When we think of aliens, we either think of a friendly Spielberg ET. version, the “grey-big-eyed” alien abduction version, or the frightening Ripley Scott Alien version. But as we have learned through Covid…sometimes the deadliest dangers come in small packages.
Life
I love science fiction films about space. I have seen almost every creature-double-feature film ever put out about monsters from other planets. I have seen it all, but Life, which was directed by Daniel Espinosa and stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Rebecca Ferguson, Hiroyuki Sanada, Ryan Reynolds, Olga Dykhovichnaya, and Ariyon Bakare, literally had me jumping out of my chair and screaming in terror.
The film takes place on the International Space Station and the special effects of floating through the station are spectacular. The trouble begins when the crew is told to capture an off-course capsule that contains research specimens collected while it was on Mars. The science officer, Hugh (Ariyon Bakare) is tasked with studying the single-cell organism that has been nicknamed Calvin by the children on Earth.
When Calvin begins to grow and become more powerful, it begins to resemble something closer to a vampiric stingray with a thirst for blood. After Calvin attacks two crew members, Rory Adams (Ryan Reynolds) and Ekaterina (Olga Dykhovichnaya), the remaining crew try to destroy the creature. Every attempt is a failure. The crew struggle to isolate the creature as it grows in strength and intelligence.
Conclusion
I don’t think this film was appreciated when it was released in 2017, but knowing what we do now on how fast a tiny virus or bacteria can wipe out millions of people, I think Life would have a bigger impact if watched today. Calvin is a threat to not only the astronauts on the space station, but also to the people on Earth, and I promise you this, you will be on the edge of your seat watching to see if David (Jake Gyllenhaal) and Miranda (Rebecca Ferguson) can keep the alien life form from entering Earth’s atmosphere.
You can watch Life on Amazon Prime or Hulu.
