PANDORUM

Another sci-fi. Belter. It must appear by now that I myself am quite a science fiction freak. So let me set it straight. My friends I am indeed the biggest geek alive, I love sci-fi films, the design, the far out concept of being as far away from home as physically possible, the idea of no help, no sound, no boundaries. Just love it! So here comes a brilliant sci-fi which has looked at all these things and thought, its time for another horror set on a massive space ship, e.g.. Alien, Event Horizon. Essentially my first thought of Pandorum was that it was going to be exactly the same as these classics, (still likable but over used) but it wasn't. In some ways of course it can be matched up but altogether, the performance of one of my upcoming favorite actors (Ben Foster) and the concept and overall design of the film is fantastic, not to mention the unbelievable lighting which had been involved.

The first thing to notice is of coarse the expensive production design. Where do you get the idea to design a fantastic (small) country size ship, then make the inside one of the most claustrophobic spaces in the universe. Physics. Look at the designs of the space shuttle and the international space station, they are themselves big structures but inside, due to the amount of space needed for the necessities of the crafts there is almost no room for personnel. These new designs are no different, in fact in a couple of thousand years these ships may even be just like this, hopefully without the horror, aliens and mutated people thing. Although we don't actually see a lot of the ship, we get a sense that the whole thing is just one big maze, and with the power kicking on and off, its a maze immersed in darkness. The idea of making the ship a sleeping city was also quite a creepy thought, thinking what could happen while your asleep and what happens if no one wakes you up, and thats exactly what this film plays on. The massive sleeping bay is a personal fav of mine, because after we have been brought into this world of claustrophobia we are brought out into this wide open space, where the characters are at their most vulnerable which means they have to use the small tight spaces to hide and fight. Perfect.

The next thing is lighting. The first scenes open into darkness while the power struggles to come back on, flaring the lights on when it surges through the ship, trying to restart. The most claustraphobic scenes such as the air duct scenes are shot in darkness, this gives some of the most fearful moments in the films, showing that the characters are indeed alone and have no sense or idea of what is going on around them.

Apart from being a sci-fi, this film is also a very smart thriller which promises twists and brilliant performances, but also, one hell of a ride, so get yer geek hats on and take a look at the stars (or just go to the cinema).