I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. It tells a fairly simple but very engaging proper sci-fi story in a way that makes it refreshingly easy to suspend disbelief: no really stupid bad science or cheesy overblown SFX, and very little clunky exposition (apart perhaps from a little by the dad early on).
Others have alluded to a "space western" vibe, and perhaps this is somewhat valid in a good way- it would arguably fit quite comfortably in the Firefly/Serenity universe. It's not full of highly conceptual artifice but the attention to detail is very impressive, bringing to life a believably gritty reality that reminded me of Ridley Scott's thinking about the future not being shiny-new, but old and worn.
The main characters are nicely understated but relatable, the pace is great, and unlike a lot of sci-fi movies that treat the viewer as an utter moron, this one doesn't over-explain or create spurious tensions and conflict for cheap 'drama'.
As a kid I hoovered up EE Doc Smith and old mags like Fantasy & Science Fiction, Analog, Amazing SF et al, still love the stories and novels of Asimov, Heinlein, Clarke, Simak, Poul Anderson, LeGuinn, Ellison etc and would still rather watch Bladerunner again than yet another trashy superhero 'blockbuster'. Bearing all that in mind, I highly recommend this movie.
Others have alluded to a "space western" vibe, and perhaps this is somewhat valid in a good way- it would arguably fit quite comfortably in the Firefly/Serenity universe. It's not full of highly conceptual artifice but the attention to detail is very impressive, bringing to life a believably gritty reality that reminded me of Ridley Scott's thinking about the future not being shiny-new, but old and worn.
The main characters are nicely understated but relatable, the pace is great, and unlike a lot of sci-fi movies that treat the viewer as an utter moron, this one doesn't over-explain or create spurious tensions and conflict for cheap 'drama'.
As a kid I hoovered up EE Doc Smith and old mags like Fantasy & Science Fiction, Analog, Amazing SF et al, still love the stories and novels of Asimov, Heinlein, Clarke, Simak, Poul Anderson, LeGuinn, Ellison etc and would still rather watch Bladerunner again than yet another trashy superhero 'blockbuster'. Bearing all that in mind, I highly recommend this movie.