I started this review in this conventional manner as, in many ways, this is a very conventional film. I hadn't heard much about this film except that it's been widely hailed as a return to classic '70s hard sci-fi. I suppose it is classic sci-fi, but personally I don't think hard sci-fi has gone anywhere... last I checked it was alive and well in films like WALL·E, Sunshine and Children of Men. But that's not a criticism of the film, more a criticism of the publicity... and the publicity is relevant, it colours your view of a film just as much as mood or the company you see it in... I try not the let these things affect how I see a film but the fact is, it's impossible.
There was nothing particularly wrong with this film. I enjoyed it really, as I enjoy most of the films I see, especially sci-fi. But then again I didn't feel there was anything in this film that I hadn't seen before. Themes of isolation and abandonment are abound in fiction and this film reminded of quite a few other films I've seen... and I should point out that I haven't seen 2001: a space odyssey or Solaris, the two which a lot of people are referencing in the context of this film.
It was a nice, self-contained, interesting piece of sci-fi story-telling but I can't help wishing that it was a little bit more. It could have been a longer film, or it could have been a good book; I don't know, it was too removed, too tidy, I just didn't feel involved, there was no sense of introspection - which is what I would expect from classic science fiction. I expect to read or watch classic hard sci-fi and think "What would I do?" or "Could we
I tend to criticise then try to find some nice things to say in my reviews, so why break a tradition? This was a good film and Sam Rockwell puts on a great performance. It's an engaging enough story and it's worth seeing if you like classic sci-fi - along the lines of Issac Asimov and Philip K. Dick I mean, as opposed to say, The Terminator or Star Wars.
7/10
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