Starring
Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Ryan Reynolds, Hiroyuki Sanada,
Ariyon Bakare, Olga Dihovichnaya. Directed by Daniel Espinosa. (2017,
104 min).
The
obvious inspiration for Life is the original Alien, but
that shouldn't dissuade sci-fi/horror fans from checking it out.
While Ridley Scott's classic has been liberally ripped-off for
decades, this is one of the better ones. And perhaps because my initial
expectations weren't quite as lofty, I actually enjoyed Life a
bit more than Scott's own recent prequel, Alien Covenant.
The
crew onboard the International Space Station thaw out a single
dormant cell from a Martian soil sample, which is given the nickname,
Calvin. Deciding it prefers life outside the petri dish, it grows
exponentially into a nasty, carnivorous, multi-tentacled monster.
Calvin also proves to be highly adaptable, extremely
intelligent and damn-near unkillable; efforts by the crew to destroy or send it into outer space
appear futile.
 |
| "This is going right up my nose." |
It's
a familiar story, but told with a lot of panache with a few unique
touches of its own. The entire film takes place in a zero-G
environment, including an impressive 10-minute opening scene that
introduces each character and takes us around the space station in a
single unbroken shot. The film isn't particularly scary, but it does
create a lot of tension with its claustrophobic setting and
fatalistic tone. Calvin himself is an interesting critter. Though
obviously a CGI creation, he's imaginatively rendered and sometimes
kinda creepy. None of the characters resonate much, but at least they
don't behave stupidly and some of their deaths, while not overtly
gory, are stylishly gruesome.
 |
| Jake sits on a thumbtack. |
Life
also throws a climactic curveball which, quite frankly, I
didn't see coming, something I always appreciate. The movie isn't gonna make
anyone forget Alien, nor is it likely to end up on any year-end top
10 lists. But in the moment, Life is a solid, smart slice of horror sci-fi.
EXTRA
KIBBLES
FEATURETTES:
"Claustrophobic Terror: Creating a Thriller in Space; "Life
in Zero G"; "The Art and Reality of Calvin"
"ASTRONAUT
DIARIES" - Brief, fictional video segments featuring three of
the main characters.
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SCENE
DIGITAL
COPY
KITTY CONSENSUS:
PURR-R-R...LIKE A GOOD SCRATCH BEHIND THE EARS
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