Awesome:

• Keanu Reeves arrives on earth in a slimy spacesuit that is described as “like a placenta.”
• New York City is nearly completely destroyed by a giant cloud of robot nanobugs.

Stupid:

• Jennifer Connelly is herded into a helicopter with a group of scientists with the explanation that they are being saved from an impending extra-terrestrial object that is about to crash into New York City. At the exact moment the impact is supposed to happen the helicopter is seen flying above New York City. I’m not a scientist but I’m pretty sure explosions go up as well as to the sides and possibly downwards.
• John Cleese has the start of a great cameo as a Nobel Prize winning scientist who begins a debate with Klaatu on why humanity shouldn’t be destroyed. In less than a minute the conversation is interrupted and everybody is chased by helicopters.

Pointless:

• The alien spacecraft look like they rolled off the same lot as the UFO from Starman. (For the record, I like Starman.)
• Keanu decides not to destroy humanity because Will Smith’s kid stops being a plot device for 5 seconds and cries about his dead dad.
• The United States Army arsenal consists entirely of CGI helicopters.

Final Word:
Remember the philosophical argument and Klaatu’s awesome closing monologue from the original?  That was cool. (IMDb)