Director: Alan Maxson
Year: 2023
Country: USA
Alternate Titles: N/A
Genre: Sci-Fi
Plot:
After being taken hostage together, rivals from different warring alien races find that they need each other to survive on a planet featuring a creature intent on killing both of them while they search for a magic rejuvenating vial that'll bring water back to the planet.
Review:
Overall, there's quite a lot to like with this sci-fi indie effort. One of the brighter spots here is a serviceable sci-fi storyline about alien races coming together to put the past behind them in order to achieve a common goal. This setup, basically bringing these two races that have a history of aggression and hostility against each other so that they can soon see each for who they really are and not being so different as they once thought they were, is a staple of this universe and is handled well-enough that it serves nicely to get the necessary commentary going while serving as a launching pad for the films' action and effects-work.
That is another stand-out factor here which is as impressive as the storyline featured here. The shootouts and interactions with the creatures might be less grandiose than expected but are interjected often enough to keep this interesting as there's some fantastic work throughout here. Featuring the look and design of the alien species through the use of practical masks and puppet effects, real blood, and other effective measures, there's a charming bent to the material here that feels as equally old-school and throwback as the majority of the film's plot and storyline. There's a lot going on here and it helps to make for a generally fun time overall.
This doesn't have too many flaws but some slight issues are present. One of the main drawbacks comes from the origins of the low-budget indie feature this clearly is, featuring nothing but obvious desert locations and props for the majority of its screen content. That gives this away quite regularly, much like the films' need for an exaggeratedly overlong info-dump at the beginning setting the stage for the film with everything going on between the factions and what's going on. This part is necessary for telling the story but doesn't really do much at holding it back as much as just sticking out amongst the rest of the film as a potential area of disinterest for fans.
Comments
Post a Comment