I will begin this review by admitting that I am probably a biased party. Actually, I am most definitely an extremely biased party. When the book was released, I drove around town hunting for a signed copy of Rick Yancy's "The 5th Wave," because I had a hunch it was going to be an inspiring, thought-provoking book. I was right, and it has been one of my favorite reads since.

Yancy's"The 5th Wave" makes you think a mile a minute while simultaneously tearing you apart with emotion. You want everyone to have a happy ending, yet Yancy spares no one -- characters or readers -- from end-of-the-world turmoil. Character development is a hugely defining factor in the book. The Others (aliens) have been hitting humanity with wave after disastrous wave, yet the readers can be just as wound up with the survival of the human race as they are with the plight of Cassie Sullivan, one teenage girl on a quest to survive long enough to reunite with her baby brother.

There are too many events, characters, and developments in the book to truly do it justice in one hour and 52 minutes (yes, I looked up the exact time of the movie). Looking at the film as simply a stand-alone movie, it's OK. It is interesting, and filled with heart-pounding action and adventure ... some of the time. For a good chunk of time at the beginning, the audience receives a glimpse into the first three waves. This is probably one of the more exciting parts of the movie, since it is devastation following more devastation, one hard hit on humanity after another. You even feel emotionally connected to these characters, though you have not had a chance to really get to know them yet. They are scared, and often alone, and we feel for them.

Then the story really focuses in on Cassie Sullivan, the main character, and things start to cool down ... and slow down. Yes there is still the imminent threat of danger lurking, but the audience is not really given enough time (or reason) to honestly sit and have a cry for the poor girl. True, she is no damsel in distress (she's a bit trigger happy, to say the least), but there aren't enough gritty, complicated moments that we see from her to know that she is a three-dimensional character, who is developing into a more interesting person due to her circumstances. Instead, you find yourself originally captivated by the exposition, then left waiting throughout the rest of the movie for Cassie to show some serious bad-assery. This bad-assery never comes, since most of the times Cassie channels her strong, tough side, she is usually running/walking/skulking/crawling away from the bad guys.

On to the relationship aspects of the movie -- they are pretty weak. In the book, Yancy did an amazing job delving into the personalities of characters, and revealing how the characters connected with one another. But in the movie, you often get a wishy-washy explanation for some seriously complicated relationships. The mysterious Evan Walker, for instance, just appears in the story ... and sticks around for no apparent reason. Later in the movie, his presence is explained in full, but audience members are still left thinking, "That is a weak explanation." Basically, in the book, Evan has a layered backstory and has complicated motives and emotions. Yet in the movie, his every decision is completely black and white, making him appear paper-thin in comparison to his fascinating, complex alter ego found in "The 5th Wave" series.

I will say, there were a few variations from the book, as there always are in movie-adaptations, but I wouldn't say it ruined the story. Each actor did a fine job playing their roles, and I believed them as their characters. In my opinion, though, it was the small changes from the book to the movie that, if they had been left alone, could have upgraded the film from simply "enjoyable" to a post-apocalyptic favorite, like the "Hunger Games." The film-portrayal of the story painted Yancy's world as a copycat of the plethora post-apocalyptic films and books currently being released, but coming from someone who has read the book and seen the movie, I can vouch for Rick Yancy -- his book is no copycat. The film watered down the plot, and simplified the complex plot-twits.

So is "The 5th Wave" worth seeing in theaters? Answer: yes and no. If you have read the book, then definitely head to a theater near you, because although it won't be as good as its written counterpart, it is still an amazing rush to see Rick Yancy's world on the big screen. If you have not read "The 5th Wave," wait for the movie to come out on DVD, and book it to the bookstore (pun intended)!

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