Pandorum

Back in 1997 a movie called Event Horizon was released and it wasn't until it came out on dvd did I get the chance to see it. I was impressed and in light of movies such as the Aliens franchise, Event Horizon used paranoia as one of it's themes to give the audience an added sense of terror. Flash forward to 2009 and here comes a movie that caught my attention from the trailers that promoted it. Could this be another Event Horizon? Goosebumps! Outerspace! Horror! Those damn spaceships always seem like a trap and with the unknown running around it makes for a helluva good time.

Pandorum opens up with a character named Bower (Ben Foster) and Payton (Dennis Quaid) waking up from suspended animation (Aliens anyone) to discover that the crew that they were relieving is nowhere to be found and the ship doesn't seem to be doing that good. The doors leading out from their room are shut and well, you guessed it, someone has to go out to open the doors. Of course young Bower is the one that goes and Payton stays behind to navigate him through the ships corridors. Bower discovers that there is something more sinister outside those sealed doors and that it is up to him to save the ship, with the aid of other ship inhabitants that he comes across.

I have read the reviews from other (paid) critics who bashed the movie and unanimously said that it would please hard core sci-fi fans, and you know what, they are right. I had a great time watching this one step up from a B-Grade movie and even with a limited budget, it taps into what sci-fi horror on a space ship is all about, the right scares at the right time with the added ingredient of paranoia that could be playing a role into the actions and decisions of the characters. Of course this is no Alien or Aliens, but does it reach the level of a Event Horizon, you betcha!
3 out of 5 speakers