It is difficult to pin down exactly how I felt seeing this movie. Some moments had great writing but a lot is left up to interpretation which can be a turn off to some. It is fascinating to watch, but there is actually not a whole lot going on when putting it to paper. I will keep spoilers to a minimum. Click "read more".
Plot Summary
The movie takes place entirely on the International Space Station and followed 6 scientists. Three are American and 3 are Russian. Shortly into the film there communications are damaged and nuclear war has broken out between the U.S.A. and Russia and both sets of scientists are given orders to take control of the space station. From there it is constant suspense as trust is put into question and everyone is on edge out of fear of ending up being killed. All the while nobody has any idea of what is going on back on Earth.
Spoilers - Ultimately only two of the six survive and the film ends with them heading back to Earth with many unanswered questions. An open ending.
My Thoughts
This is a movie that is great at build up and suspense, but has no payoff. The ending leaves many questions unanswered and is completely unclear about what will happen next. There are a lot of people that like to leave things up to interpretation, but personally, I find endings like this to be lazy writing. See my thoughts on that. One can argue all day about why they like leaving things up to interpretation, but there is no denying that ending a story like that is much easier than writing a satisfying conclusion.
This is a case of a good movie with a lousy ending. Does that ruin the experience? Hard to say. I was really enjoying the movie up until the ending because the suspense and buildup was very well paced and, while no mystery, it was not entirely clear what was going to happen and what everyone wanted. But, when it ended without closure it really soured the experience looking back on the film. Visually it is great, space is super realistic and the sights of Earth from space, especially when war breaks out, are gorgeous. So, if you are someone who is into this stuff and do not mind filling in blanks yourself than I would recommend this film. Sadly, for me and anyone who invests a lot in story, it does not satisfy. 3/5
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