1. Passengers

I'll start off by saying that this is a bit of a cheat, as this film was released in 2016, however it's still being shown in cinemas (obviously), so this is my first film of the year!

I'll start off by addressing the fact that this movie is set in space. Already I'm on the fence. I find space and stars and planets and the universe completely beautiful, and on a clear night, I'm obsessed with the stars, and finding the couple of constellations I know. I even have a stargazing app. However, I am also absolutely terrified of it. I've never seen Gravity or Interstellar or Apollo 13 or any other space film pre-2015 (see previous post) for that exact reason. What I have seen, is The Martian. I went into that completely petrified, but it was actually one of my favourite films of 2015, so I went into Passengers feeling open minded

First thing with Passengers is it is not a Sci-Fi or Fantasy film, it is a Rom-Com in space, with little bits of action and excitement. I think it's quite a clever concept, as I can see it appealing to a large cross section of people, not least with it's casting of the lovely looking Chris Pratt, Jennifer Laurence, and forever Morpheus from The Matrix in my heart, Laurence Fishburne. 

Throughout the entire film, the only people we really meet are those that I've mentioned above, alongside Michael Sheen, which again, I found really interesting. I do think the acting and plot here was done really nicely; although we hardly hear a backstory to the characters, I do think you really get to know them. In terms of character development, we only get to know know them in the moment, we have no past events to go on, and only interactions with people they have never met before. I found this quite creative and unique, and it made me think about how we may judge characters in films and books from other people's reactions to them, and how writers can manipulate our opinions using surrounding characters. 

Now we move on to what I didn't like... I do think the situation that Pratt's Character, Jim, is left in, is terrifying and horrific, however, upon being told by a wise robotic barman 'Make the most of what you have', he get's drunk and begins to ruin a poor woman's life. From here I found an underlying creepiness to the entire film. 

I think some parts of the plot were sloppy and lazy, without giving spoilers, I think there was room for more character development later in the film. On top of this, I found the ending really annoying and unjust, and it made me dislike both Pratt and Laurence's characters. Considering this, the fact that I did have a strong distaste towards them, must show that I was invested in the film, and that the acting was good!

Overall, I'd give the film a 6.5/10. The concept for the film was interesting, but I think the plot didn't deliver. It could have been more thought provoking, and less objectifying. If you're looking for an adventure in space with some laughs, watch The Martian instead.