![]() There’s so much that could have gone wrong. It’s a meta commentary on the very nature of these movies – especially the violent slasher horror films it so lovingly rips off. With Life, they’ve managed to deliver a masterclass in blockbuster movie writing. You couldn’t tell it, but it’s the handiwork of Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, whom the nerdiest of readers will remember as ‘the real heroes’ behind Deadpool. By definition, these movies are supposed to be filled with plot holes and cardboard characters, convenient contrivances and pathetic, laughable dialogue. Really, it’s so rare these days to see such a solidly put together piece of popcorn entertainment. What struck me most about Life was how well it was written. One by one.Īnd in space, no one can hear you scream. It is explained to us, in just one scene of expertly crafted terror, that there is no stopping Calvin. But before you can say “Run!” the tiny cell (which they’ve christened Calvin, the idiots) begins consuming literally everything it can sense in the goriest, most stomach-churning manner possible. At first, it’s just small movements a slight twitch, a steady growth in size, a noticeable reaction to its environment, to touch, to warmth. But over the next few weeks, what used to look like a wondrous, inanimate version of Baby Groot begins showing signs of intelligence. And our brave crew is tasked with bringing it back home. It’s microscopic, a single cell of life that in itself is an achievement worth writing home about.Īnd indeed, back on Earth, everyone’s losing their minds over what important heads on Times Square’s massive LED screens are calling the greatest discovery in the history of mankind. In it, a crew of six racially and culturally diverse astronauts carrying out important scientific experiments on the International Space Station intercepts a cargo vessel which is said to have discovered a mysterious organism on Mars. Almost too well made in fact, for the sort of film it is (a largely derivative thriller which borrows heavily not only from the goofy monster movies of the ‘50s, but also from gory ‘80s horror and pulpy ‘90s action). The movie is, to put it plainly, like a mutated clone birthed in a secret government lab using smuggled Alien DNA, but unlike the dozens of other films it has inspired, Life probably comes closest to not seeming like an out and out rip off, and takes, against all expectations, a life of its own.įor one, it’s remarkably well made. Especially now that Life, the new space thriller starring Jake Gyllenhaal, Ryan Reynolds and Rebecca Ferguson, is out. But this one, for Ridley Scott’s classic creature feature Alien, is worth talking about, even 40 years after audiences first saw it on that equally iconic poster. It’s not often we talk about movie taglines.
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