By Travis Johnson
Morten Tylum’s (The Imitation Game) high-concept romantic SF adventure sees two passengers on a century-long interstellar voyage find themselves in trouble when their hibernation pods open prematurely – 90 years prematurely in point of fact. They don’t have a lot of time to grapple with the idea of growing old and dying without seeing another human being, because they have to contend with a looming disaster that threatens the lives of all their still-sleeping crewmates. They do, however, have time to fall in love, because they are two of the prettiest people alive – Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt.
This looks like the business. Screenwriter Jon Spaihts knows his way around science fiction – his original script for Prometheus is so much better than the end result – and if nothing else, it’s a high concept, high budget film that isn’t a remake, prequel or adaptation, which is a rare joy in the current cultural climate.
Passengers hits Australian theatres on January 1, 2017.
