I.S.S.
I.S.S.
Starring Ariana DeBose, Chris Messina, John Gallagher Jr., Masha Mashkova
Directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite
NASA astronaut Kira Foster (Ariana DeBose) boards the International Space Station with fellow astronaut Christian Campbell (John Gallagher Jr.) where they meet fellow American Gordon Barrett (Chris Messina) and Russian cosmonauts Weonika Vetrov (Masha Mashkova), Nicolai Pulov (Costa Ronin) and his brother Alexey (Pilou Asbaek). At first they all get along and work together to accomplish their goals as they stare out at the beautiful planet Earth where it seems from where they're at there's no borders or barriers.
Then one day Kira looks out and sees explosions on Earth, and they only intensify as they leave imprints on the planet. Both the Americans and the Russians receive transmissions from their respective countries - they're at war, and they're to take over the I.S.S. by any means necessary. Bonds are tested, trust is created and broken, and ultimately people reveal their true colors as they struggle to survive in the vacuum of space.
The Good:
Space movies are always inherently terrifying, because there's nowhere more isolated than space. You can't expect police to arrive within minutes, as any outside help would take days at least to get there. Films like "Alien" and "Gravity" - albeit two totally different genres - showcase this mightily. "Alien" even has its classic tagline: "In space, no one can hear you scream." While "Alien" is terrifying as a group of astronauts come under attack from a sinister alien creature, "Gravity" is more terrifying in that it shows what would happen if one person is stuck alone in space with seemingly no hope of getting home. Sandra Bullock nails her performance and is one of the most visually stunning space films ever made.
So what does this have to do with "I.S.S.?" Because it's another isolated film set in space, that sort of combines both "Alien" and "Gravity." Like "Alien," they come under attack, albeit by one another, while like "Gravity" it shows how helpless they really are. While not as memorable as the other two, "I.S.S." still manages to convey these emotions quite well.
Going back to my Covergirl analogy, this film is easy, breezy, and beautiful. Easy in the sense that it provides six fantastic actors performing to their strengths and giving great performances that make it easy for the audience to sit through. Ariana DeBose specifically nails the lead role as a character who's on the outside - everyone else has worked together before, and she's the true black sheep of the group. As such she finds it hard to trust anyone when the war breaks out, and even doubts her own American comrades at times. Yet she also finds trust especially in Chris Messina's Gordon, and the two have great friendly chemistry together.
The film is breezy in that it runs at a scant 90 minutes, and in a day and age where it seems every movie needs to be at least two hours, it's quite refreshing to sit back and relax as the tension amps up almost immediately. There's no hours-long character studies or emotional depth, but within the first fifteen to twenty minutes the tension has already begun. We get just enough information to make each character distinct, but don't dwell on the specifics too long.
Finally the film is beautiful in its visuals, both beautiful in a natural and, oddly enough, beautiful in a disastrous way (after all, there is some sort of beauty in disaster as well). The planet looks peaceful, serene, and wonderful. As Weonika says, it's like there's no borders at all looking at it from their vantage point. This only intensifies the tension when we see the nuclear bombs going off from above, and the Earth itself is horribly scarred from it. It shows the havoc humanity can cause on the natural order,
The tension keeps you riveted during the short runtime as you wonder if the Americans and the Russians will really turn on one another, or stay loyal to their combined purpose, especially considering Fordon and Weronika are in a relationship. It tests the boundaries of humanity and the boundaries of country loyalty, asking the question "how far will you go for country loyalty?" Yet that's just the first layer of this multi-faceted story, as loyalties and trusts are made and broken, and ultimately there might not be anyone you can totally trust.
The Bad:
In a sense the film could've been about ten or fifteen minutes longer in order to make the story make more sense. There's moments where you don't understand the characters' motivations, especially near the end, and leaves you wishing you knew more about their motivations.
The film is filled with cliches that are easy to pick up on, and adds to the lack of a true story being told. There's numerous subplots that go nowhere, and while the effects and performances are decent enough, ultimately it's too "safe" of a movie to really garner any real emotional stakes. Again, it's "easy breezy beautiful," but not "intense, exciting, or memorable."
The Summary:
Held by a great six-actor cast, "I.S.S." has decent tension and excitement in its short runtime to keep you entertained during the film, but not enough to make you want to go for a second go-around.
The Score: B
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