The genre of sci-fi is not exactly one of my favorite ones, except ones that are based in some sort of reality--i.e. based in or around Earth or isn't centuries in the future, etc. Even if they have regular type people, then it can work for me, so when I saw my first trailer of "Life", I thought this was going to be one of those sci-fi flicks I can sink my teeth into, and I definitely got my money's worth.
Six astronauts including David Jordan (Jake Gyllenhaal), Miranda North (Rebecca Ferguson), Rory Adams (Ryan Reynolds), Hugh Derry (Ariyon Bakare), Ekaterina Golovkina (Olga Dihovichaya) and Sho Murakami (Hiroyuki Sanada) aboard the international space station in order to retrieve and examine a specimen from Mars that could provide evidence for extraterrestrial life on the Red Planet. The crew determines the sample contains a large, single-celled micro-organism--the first example of life beyond Earth. But... things aren't always as they seem. As the crew begins to conduct research, their methods end up having unintended consequences, realizing the life form proves more intelligent than anyone ever expected. All of a sudden, the specimen shows signs of aggression, threatening the entire mission. Discovery turns to primal fear when they realize this rapidly evolving form was what caused extinction on Mars, and now threatens the crew and all life on Earth.
This was intensely and grittily directed by Daniel Espinosa ("Babylonsjukan" '04, "Outside Love" '07, "Easy Money" '10, "Safe House" '12, "Child 44" '15) plus TV and a short. This filmmaker definitely knows intense hence his resume, and his ability to get his actors to emit the pathos and emotions needed for a particular scene is amazing. You could feel the pain, fear and desperation these actors were displaying, and this is talented direction. It was creatively written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick ("Zombieland" '09, "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" '13, "Zombieland" (TV movie) '13, "Deadpool" '16). For not being based on a novel, this was incredibly creative. If I had to akin it to any other film out there, it would be "Alien" '79. And with that, it was more than a homage than a copy. There were differences in this as opposed to :Alien", but there were enough similarities to understand and be really OK about. This premise is totally far-fetched, but has great fodder for a intriguing plot. If you like this screenplay, not to worry, because these guys have teamed up, once again, and have written both "Zombieland 2" and "Deadpool 2" which are both in pre-production. And, of course, the visual effects predominantly designed by ILM (Industrial, Light & Magic) and Double Negative are seamless and awe-inspiring. You feel as though you're looking at a space station orbiting Earth, not to mention the interior of the station is designed so realistically. Not to spoil anything, but you will not see the end coming! It is a mind-blower personified.
Certainly if sci-fi is your favorite genre, the liking of this is a no-brainer, however if you're like me and am not really fond of them, this will still be intriguing just by the way this is written, directed and acted. And it's all in a nifty IMAX format to boot!
Out of 4 Stars: 4 Rated: R 104mins.
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