What if the world was at War? What if the neutral ground of the International Space Station became a battleground itself? Astronauts and scientists who had worked together for the common good were now enemies… It’s a scary thought and that is the premise of I.S.S. On the surface, the movie feels more like a horror film in space against the backdrop of war, but really, it’s an interesting political thriller where loyalties are tested and suspicion and fear give way to common sense. In the movie, America and Russia go to war and essentially start World War III which becomes a nuclear war so the Russian and American scientists at the international space station who are friends and colleagues, are now supposed to be enemies even though they’re not soldiers. The international space station is not a place for politics, it’s a place of science, but quickly becomes a politically charged thriller for the science that gives way to the politics of the world. I really enjoyed the film for what it is and kind of felt like a really good Star Trek episode. It’s the kind of allegory that a Star Trek episode would tell. But the ultimate comparison is to one of my favorite war films with two great actors, Denzel Washington and Gene Hackman in Crimson Tide!

The film starts out with new astronauts getting familiar with the camaraderie on the international space station between Americans and Russians and then all of a sudden, they are thrust into war where each nation is alerting their commanders that they must take over the international space station for their country. Friends become enemies, and trust immediately turns into suspicion. Are there really any bad guys versus good guys in the film when you will do anything for survival? That’s the ultimate question that the film poses. What makes this film work and worth watching is the intensity all the way to the end because you don’t really know who’s good or bad considering each person is doing what they’re supposed to do for their country.

Their first duty is to their country and then the science comes second, but for non-soldiers, it’s really all about the science and cooperation among nations so now they’re put to the test and end up doing things I thought they would never have to do. I don’t know if there is a true villain in the film and that’s another reason to watch the film. But it also has a fantastic cast with Ariana DeBose, Chris Messina; John Gallagher Jr., Costa Ronin, Pilou Asbæk, and Masha Mashkova. One of the best things the film has going for it is because they’re in space and weightless there’s a slowness in the pace that draws you in. Even the action scenes are not that quick like a slasher film so it draws you in as the audience to what’s about to happen. But of course, everybody is trying to escape and not everybody could go so now it becomes a deathly game of musical chairs for the last life support pod.

Overall, there isn’t much to complain about with this film. It’s only 90 minutes so it’s not long and drawn out. It gets right to the point. The only thing that I had a problem with is you don’t get enough time to know the characters before the suspicion sets in and you’re questioning who’s good and who’s bad. you get a few minor details that are supposed to make us connect with the characters, but I feel like it’s not enough in 90 minutes before we’re off to the races with the intensity of the film. Perhaps some flashback scenes with the characters and what their lives were on Earth would have helped, but this isn’t a drama. I consider this feeling much more of a political thriller. But with quite a few twists and turns, everything works in a 90-minute film. It also reminded me a lot of the Sandra Bullock space movie, Gravity which never wasted time with its scenes and kept you on the edge of your seat all the way to the end. That’s what I.S.S does. The cinematography within the space scenes is good and makes it feel like t you’re there up at the international space station. I’m always a big critic of pacing in movies. One of the reasons I hated Killers of the Flower Moon is because it was too long and drawn out and took too long to get to the point. But you can do a lot with a movie in 90 minutes where scenes are not wasted, and you can slowly draw your audience into the action… into the mystery. That’s I.S.S. in a nutshell and it makes it a film worth watching. Directors sometimes try to put too much into a movie, a lot of unnecessary fluff that moves the audience away from the overall point of a film. That’s not the case for this movie and while I would have liked to have seen some flashback scenes, I feel like you get everything you need within 90 minutes for a great political thriller and a war movie in space. I.S.S. is a movie worth watching whether you rent it on-demand or even catch a matinee at the theater. Maybe it’ll only be a good one-timer for you, but it’s definitely worth your time and the price of a movie ticket.