Hollywood needs - but probably couldn't afford - more filmmakers like Lana and Andy Wachowski.

In 1999, the Chicago-born siblings pioneered the slow-motion "bullet time" effect in The Matrix and its impenetrable sequels, and three years ago, they delivered an admirable yet flawed rendering of David Mitchell's supposedly unfilmable novel, Cloud Atlas.

The Wachowskis are daredevils, willing to go out on a limb to realise their epic visions, even if the limb snaps under the weight of their bold ambition.

The bough certainly breaks during Jupiter Ascending, a bombastic space opera with a muddled narrative glued together by jaw-dropping digital trickery.

In 3D and IMAX, the writer-directors serve up a feast for the senses, choreographing aerial battles at dizzying speed to the propulsive clatter of Michael Giacchino's score that take heavy choral nods from the most recent Star Wars trilogy.

Once the computer-generated dust settles and the good-looking cast attempts to distil the plot, you sense any logic was jettisoned out of an airlock in order to accommodate the state-of-the-art thrills.

The queen of the royal alien house of Abrasax is murdered, leaving behind three heirs: Balem (Eddie Redmayne), his sister Kalique (Tuppence Middleton) and playboy younger brother Titus (Douglas Booth).

The siblings own various planets in the universe, which they harvest for resources, and the most valuable is earth, which belongs to greedy Balem.

In an outrageous quirk of genetic fate, Balem learns that an immigrant cleaner called Jupiter Jones (Mila Kunis) possesses a rare DNA combination, which matches his late mother and therefore entitles her to stake a claim to earth.

He dispatches hench-creatures to slay Jupiter so possession reverts to him.

Meanwhile, Titus scents an opportunity to usurp his older sibling and hires a genetically engineered ex-military hunter called Caine Wise (Channing Tatum) to protect Jupiter and deliver her to the altar so he can claim earth through marriage.

This covert mission is compromised when Caine develops feelings for the nubile and feisty earthling.

Jupiter Ascending is a lavish slice of sci-fi hokum, punctuated by occasional lines of loopy dialogue - "Bees are genetically disposed to recognise royalty" - and lukewarm on-screen romance.

The Wachowskis conceive one neat visual trick: Tatum's rocket-powered boots, which allow the strapping actor to skate around skyscrapers and through exploding artillery of the myriad melees.

Oscar nominee Redmayne hissy-fits as the chief villain, whose plans to liquidise humans to make a youth-regenerating serum are thrown into disarray by Jupiter and her hunky protector.

Supporting cast pout and growl in underwritten roles but they are invariably drowned out by the sound and fury of the special effects wizards razing downtown Chicago and Abrasax outposts in the glittering firmament.

You get what you pay for and Jupiter Ascending is a dazzling, cacophonous yet almighty mess.