Pandorum (2009) User Reviews

Better than most critics say

[freaky_dave · 7/10 · 30 September 2009]

I saw Pandorum last night and was somewhat impressed with the movie. After reading critics reviews, and how they trashed it, I was going in expecting less and was pleasantly surprised.

Pandorum borrows heavily from other sci-fi movies, but what movie doesn't nowadays. Taking a lot of ideas from Alien, a 1979 classic sci-fi movie, and borrowing the creatures from The Descent, another near classic movie from a few years ago, Pandorum was still impressive. The storyline wasn't completely original because it reminded me a lot of Event Horizon, but whereas Pandorum went more for a science level, Event Horizon was more supernatural. Most people trashed Event Horizon as well, but it was another movie I liked also, even though the ending of that movie was flawed. Of course I'm reviewing Pandorum, so I won't mention the former film anymore.

THe cast for the most part was rather good for a movie of this type. Ben Foster, and Dennis Quaid are the two most marketable names, but the other characters, outside of maybe the Cam Gigandet character, worked pretty good. My only real problem with Gigandet was that he overacted a bit, but otherwise everything was good.

The movie does claustrophobia well, and the entire movie had me jumping a lot. THere was tension, and for the most part the film was fast paced. I didn't find myself looking at my watch one time. THe visuals were decent, but the creatures should've been kept in the shadows more. Horror works best when the viewer uses his/her own imagination to visualize them.

Did I say horror. Well yeah because this is really a sci-fi horror film more along the lines of Alien as mentioned above. It doesn't match the classic status of that movie, but Pandorum is worth seeing for its psychological feel and how some people might act after being in space for so long. By the way, the movie does have a twist, which I will not spoil for anyone who wants to see it.

Note: THis is a film that may make most of its money on DVD, and will likely acquire somewhat of a cult status.

Better than Event Horizon and Ghost Ship combined

[dfranzen70 · 7/10 · 24 September 2009]

Echoing such luminous sci-fi classics as 2001 and Alien, Pandorum is a terrific psychological thriller, although it does struggle at times to be coherent and original. But it's a true mindbender, and it's packed with action that moves so quickly neither the actors nor the audience can really catch a breath, which is a good move if your plot is shaky to begin with.

As with the best deep-space movies, the context is mental illness, what the Professor on Gilligan's Island called, oddly enough, "island madness." Only in space. In the distant, distant future, a ship has been sent from the Earth carrying a lot of people, headed to the only Earth-like planet ever found. Sometime during the journey, things go awry. We pick up the story as an astronaut named Bower (Ben Foster) awakens from hypersleep, abruptly; he's soon followed by his commanding officer, Payton (Dennis Quaid). The rest of the crew is gone, and the only door is locked from the outside. What's happened here? Making matters more difficult is the amnesia that each man suffers from, owing to their having been in hypersleep way longer than intended. Somehow, they must piece together what has happened and find out what lies behind that door - and throughout the rest of the gigantic ship.

Not only does the movie recall Aliens and 2001, you can also see similarities to The Descent and The Abyss; really, any movie in which people are trapped in claustrophobic environs. And although the pacing is frenetic at times, the movie is really chillingly shot (by Wedigo von Schultzendorff). On the one hand, the plot flows linearly - Bower needs to get to the ship's reactor so he can reboot it and save everyone - meaning that the actors race from scene to scene, running out of time. On the other hand, they don't piece together what's happened as quickly as they might in other, lesser films; they seem to figure things out gradually, as if assembling a puzzle in their heads. Bowers and others - and there are others - discover right away, though, that they're not really alone on the ship and that their enemies are extremely strong and fast and vicious.

Injected into this oh-my-goodness-what's-out-there madness is, well, madness. The movie's title is explained as being a sort of mental illness that affects astronauts from time to time, when they just plain go bonkers for seemingly no reason and kill everyone on board. Is that's what's happening here? Is Bower the crazy one? Or is it Payton? Are they, in fact, alone on the ship? Foster is excellent as the hero who remembers a little bit more of their mission as time elapses; Quaid, in turn, shows a few more layers than we're accustomed to seeing from him (he's usually more of a poor man's Harrison Ford). Both actors turn in convincing, full-throated performances that complement, rather than succumb to, the special effects and cinematic wizardry. Often, the effects are the entire show. Now, it's true that you won't see a lot of character development here, as you might in the most cerebral of sci-fi, but what works best here is the paucity of knowledge about the situation and the characters. By spinning the tale gradually, feeding the audience only a snippet at a time, director Christian Alvart dangles the mystery in front of his viewers without allowing them to settle back and solve the mystery on their own. When you're constantly kept on your toes with sudden lurches of unseen shapes and reverberating noises, you - like the befuddled characters - are concurrently kept off balance. The result is an unsettling, entertaining delight.

Aliens meet The Descent!!!

[joselnieves81 · 6/10 · 26 September 2009]

I simply loved the posters for PANDORUM, they were edgy and graphic enough to make me want to give this movie a shot even thou i'm not a Dennis Quaid fan at all. I gave it a shot earlier today and i have to say it was a pretty good movie.

PANDORUM is your classic outer space scifi movie which we really haven't had for sometime. I do have to say the aliens kind of reminded me of the creatures in the movie DESCENT just with armor. The movie itself had a feel of the original ALIEN movie. Now to what I enjoyed about this movie was the way the story evolved into a edge of your seat thriller with twist after twist. The story is what separates this from other spaceship, scifi movies. Even leaves the viewer thinking "what if" this happens. PANDORUM is a good way to enter this fall season. Great story, good effects, easy story to follow, just enough gore to satisfy everyone and not to much Dennis Quaid to make me happy!

A good Sci-fi Scary movie

[ciscokid1970 · 9/10 · 28 September 2009]

I have to say this movie was better than I expected. If you liked Aliens and Resident Evil...this is like both of those movies got together and had a sequel. Well not quite, but the story was good and had no gaping holes in it. The acting was good without going over the top.

I loved the way this movie started; guy wakes up from hyper-sleep…his memory is not fully functional, he knows things are not right and has to save the day.

I thought the story was great in that they did not over-explain everything like they have in so many sci-fi movies. The mid plot line was very good never found myself asking "what the hell are you doing", and the ending was very good without being so trivially expected.

Of course Dennis Quaid is a great actor but I really liked watching Ben Foster. He was one of the best actors in 3:10 to Yuma.

Special effects were good but did not need to be over the top because the story was solid. Worth the price of admission.

Worth the money.. no really heh

[LOVEumALL · 7/10 · 26 September 2009]

Better than you'd expect. I was shocked that movies like this.. can still sell and be good enough to watch. The theater was packed. Nobody was disappointed. Grade A- acting. Intense action! New superstars will emerge from this one. I won't spoil it by telling you who. You'll see. Rating >> 8.1

Antibodies director Christian Alvart takes suspense into space with this tale of two astronauts who realize that they aren't alone as they drift into the darkest corners of our galaxy. Awakening in their hyper-sleep chamber with no memory of who they are or what their mission is, disoriented astronauts Lt. Payton (Dennis Quaid) and Corporal Bower (Ben Foster) gradually surmise that they are the only ones aboard the darkened spacecraft. But how did they get here, and what are those strange sounds coming from the belly of the ship? The only way out of their hyper-sleep chamber is a narrow air shaft, and the only one small enough to climb through it is Corporal Bower. As the younger of the two space travelers shimmies inside, the older remains behind to offer guidance on the radio transmitter. But the deeper Corporal Bower ventures into the ship, the more apparent it becomes that something horrible has happened. Could it be that the survival of the entire human race rests in the hands of these two astronauts stuck on a lonely ship in deep space?

I'm no horror fan but, man, I had a great time!

[aiga · 9/10 · 11 October 2009]

Yeh! As I said, I'm no horror fan or expert for that matter. Particularly I don't like the slashers and, if you are looking for that, this is not the way to go. This movie has a quality to it. I believe in the saying 'it is all in your head'. So, this is the sort of horror that messes with your head. I think it is the best kind. You get the most thrill out of it. I had a great time watching this film. I bit my nails, I jumped in my seat, but I couldn't tear myself away from the screen even though at times I was terrified to my core. I disagree with those who say that the story is boring. It had twists and turns and you can never guess the ending. To me it is one of the key elements in movies. I want a surprise. And Pandorum has a surprise!

Better Than You Might Expect

[looie · 7/10 · 4 June 2010]

Better than you might expect, based on the television trailers. The trailers made the film look like just another clone of the "Species" series. In fact, it's nothing like that.

The film centers around two characters who awaken on what at first seems to be a ghost ship, and quickly discover the extent to which "they are not alone." The remainder of the film parallels the experiences of the two men as they separate and seek to establish control over the ship.

The film has a well-defined plot (not a given in modern sci-fi films) and sticks to it. No wacky subplots that peter out irresolutely; no absurd romancing. Also, mercifully absent were explanations of the current state of affairs that dragged the whole movie sideways.

The finale is corny but satisfying. The movie does such a good job of taking the viewer on the journey with the protagonists, that the denouement is refreshing.

Not great film-making, but good sci-fi.

I thought this was just okay

[kevin_robbins · 5/10 · 12 June 2022]

Pandorum (2009) is a movie I recently watched on Tubi. The storyline follows a space vessel where people start waking up unexpectantly to discover most of the people on the ship are missing. They start searching the ship for clues and discover the people may not be as gone as they think...

This movie is directed by Christian Alvart (Case 39) and stars Dennis Quaid (Great Balls of Fire), Ben Foster (3:10 to Yuma), Norman Reedus (Walking Dead), Cam Gigandet (Twilight) and Antje Traue (Man of Steel).

The storyline for this picture is as you'd expect and felt like a mix of Event Horizon and the Dead Space video game series. The characters should have been better based on the quality of the cast, but I didn't love Snow as the hero and I'm not sure Quaid fit this character. The masks, sets, attire, depiction of the circumstances and look and feel were all solid. There are some good kills sprinkled in here and there and the zombies were okay. I found the corporal annoying and thought the ultimate villain and conclusion was just okay.

I'm sure I'm going to be in the minority, but I thought this was just okay. I'd score this a 5-5.5/10 and only recommend watching it if nothing better was available.

Nice mix of adventure, surprises and psychological fun

[debuneezmom · 9/10 · 26 September 2009]

I thought this movie did an excellent job of tapping into a number of deep-rooted fears that seem to be universal - claustrophobia, loneliness, loss of memory, large semi-dark areas with things that go bump, not to mention suddenly waking up and not knowing what the heck is going on all around you.

It had some nice "seat jump" scenes, and had moments where it was surprising funny.

And lots of nice twists too - don't see that enough in movies in general any more!

I can't comment too much on the "technical" aspects of the film, sorry, I'm just more of "was it a good, believable story" person. This was.

This frightening Sci-Fi movie concerns about some astronauts being trapped into a claustrophobic aircraft

[ma-cortes · 7/10 · 24 October 2010]

This is a spectacular and moving story full of twists and turns ; however being pretty claustrophobic . It starts with two astronauts (Dennis Quaid , Ben Foster ) wake up from pods , they are solitaries and some has decimated the crew . One of them goes to explore the zone in where can live people no-infected . Meanwhile, the astronaut Bower attempting to survive , and he meets new survivors ( Antje Traue ,Norman Reedus, Cung Le ) hidden throughout the aircraft .Then, they encounter themselves chased by bloodthirsty,predatory monsters which have added them to his food chain. They must confront carnivorous mutants, hordes of warriors starving of human flesh and some of the most horrifying creatures ever made . The survivor group is surrounded , as they encounter a pack of carnivorous,crawling creatures that are waiting for them , facing their destruction and exposed to cruel bites by meat-eating sickos. They undertake a desperate fighting to survive and confronting each other.

This exciting picture contains thrills, chills, plot twists, action-filled with fierce fights and lots of gore and guts . The terror and action moments are fast moving and compactly realized . The film turns out to be a crossover between psychological issues of crew from ¨ Event horizon¨ , a certain similarity to the extraterrestrial attacks on the spacial corridors of ¨Alien saga ¨ , the weird monsters from ¨The descent¨ and ¨Resident evil¨ by Paul W. Anderson, here also producer , taking ideas here and there , resulting to be a fine movie . And of course the theme of people being stranded in a hostile, perilous environment with attackers creatures is justly reminiscent of ¨Pitch black¨ . The creepy images of wide range from the genuinely fantastic to the bizarre along with an eerie and amazing frames . It's predictable but also its predictability is redeemed for some extraordinary surprises and in part by the charismatic acting from the main protagonists , Quaid and Foster . The flesh-eating mutants appearance deliver the goods, plenty of screams, shocks and tension. The make-up assistants create the truly terrible cannibals. Horrifying and astonishing images about eerie events with deserted and threatening corridors , such as the creepy scenarios in the large spacial craft without barely people , and covered of metal and iron . Cool , dark cinematography by Wendigo who creates a perfect atmosphere and haunting musical score fitting to action and horror . The motion picture is surprisingly directed with startling visual style by Christian Alvart who subsequently would direct another good terror film as ¨Case 39¨ .

Best SF mix I have seen in years

[micz81 · 7/10 · 27 February 2010]

I think box-office failure of this one was caused by crappy advertising. Posters are set in the tone of "Starship Troopers" or "Crank" or "Saw" and they doesn't resemble the soul of this movie. At all. So if you want to see Pandorum, but you feel stink from the posters - don't be afraid, it's only a poster. Movie is better.

In few words: Pandorum has splendid sets and design, gooooood acting (Ben Foster especially gives power to this movie), and most important - strong directing and quite good script with few kinda' freshy concepts.

The script has only one major flaw - too much talking. This story is a great pretext to create almost silent movie. It would be a challenge to tell the plot almost without talking, but I'm sure it could have been done good. And THEN we would get a fresh movie! Instead we have something more hollywoodish, but still attractive and wort watching.

Director Christian Alvart knows how to thrill. I've watched this movie on rather bad DivX copy and shitty speakers and still was climbing the armchair in few moments. Very good sense of suspense. DVD or Blue-Ray should emphasize those experiences.

But good directing isn't much when your cast is shitty. Respect goes here to Ben Foster and Denis Quaid who assist the director in gaining the right feel of the movie. Female lead Antje Traue was a nice choice too. She jumps over the over-played "strong female character" known from times of Sigounrey Weaver's Ripley and plays here in very simple, yet realistic manner. It adds some very needed reality feel to the story. In the opposite we have Eddie Rouse whose theatrical acting - either it was director's choice or his own - doesn't fit here, and spoils the mood.

To complete the picture we have here very very very good design and nicely created and lighted sets, without joy-killing "cardboard feel". It helps again the story to be more believable. But we have to remember that I watched it on DivX, so It could be worse in better quality.

This whole bunch of things is nicely photographed and edited so the final package WILL make you happy.

Summing up - be prepared for some deja-vu from time to time (for example "The Descent" [2005], "Event Horizon" [1997], "Creep" [2004]), but it's a good mix for sure and if you are looking for dark Science Fiction in the tone (tone, not level) of Alien, I definitely recommend you this title.

- It is not a classic, but it is surprising in the midst of so many severe criticisms.

[FernandoRainer · 7/10 · 27 March 2021]

I was impressed with Pandorum and the critics were very stern. Pandorum is inspired by other science fiction films, it does not justify harsh criticism, several films do this today. The plot is not the most original, but the film tries to delve into science as much as possible.

The film has a good cast for this type of films, even if some characters are neutral, others stand out, as they fall headlong into the role of the character, this is impressive when we watch it, especially for a film of this size. The characters work well through the performance of the actors, some with exaggerations, but it is not a sin.

The film leaves you claustrophobic to the point of being restless in your home chair, it goes at a fast pace with doses of tension leaving the audience entertained in various ways, in addition to living up to the visuals of fiction, the creatures and the intergalactic gloom, imagination is awakened in the public through these shadows, which could have been more used.

In short we can say yes, it is a sci-fi horror film, but it does not carry the status that other classic sci-fi horror films do, but in any case, it is also worth watching Pandorum, due to the psychological sensation of seeing people in the space for so long surviving amid the gloom that the intergalactic carries. To make the film more potent in the midst of so many bad reviews, the ending has a surprising twist, fulfilling the shape of the majority.

Pandorum is an Amazingly Original and Mesmerizing.

[jediknight-19 · 10/10 · 26 September 2009]

Pandorum is an amazingly original and crafty sci-fi/horror film. The premise is well thought out and the script delivers bang on from the opening scene to the end. This movie grabs you like a vice right from the start, and never releases until the final credits. The mise-en-scene is beautifully dark and realistic, against the juxtaposition of human beings waking up in a ship without memories of who they are or their mission. The audience explores with the two crew members unraveling the mystery. There are many twists in this film and it's hard to find words without spoiling…so just go see it…you won't be disappointed.

In my opinion, this is the best sci-fi/horror film to hit the major screens since Alien. I viewed Pandorum on Friday, and then Surrogates on Saturday, and without question, Pandorum is a superior film. Pandorum has it all, from dark scenes, fast moving monsters, isolation…it's all there and more. In fact, I haven't felt this much realistic isolation and since Carpenter's 'The Thing'. Yes, I loved this movie! It's definitely one you want to see plastered on the big screen.

Missed Potential But Decent

[icocleric · 6/10 · 8 April 2022]

I think this film had a lot of potential, but it's got a few too man flaws to be a classic. The acting is really good, and I think they worked well with the budget they had in terms of how the film looks overall. I kind of think the idea of what Pandorum is and how it affects you was an interesting one as well.

I think the film could have benefited better from a tighter script, because there's a point in the film where everything just really starts to slow and drag, and nothing "new" is really added to the overall plotline. Yes there was some cool action, but I think it went on a bit too long to really add to the film.

I did enjoy the ending though.

Much better than Alien Covenant.

[Fella_shibby · 9/10 · 18 May 2021]

I first saw this in 2010 on a dvd which I own.

Revisited it recently.

This one is a solid genre mashup n combines the elements of horror, action, science fiction n survival thriller in an amazing way.

The creatures in this movie is a cross between the cave mutants from The Descent and the violent tribe from Doomsday n Mad Max.

I feel Alien Covenant borrowed elements from this movie.

In Pandorum, Gallo created a "new world" in a wild and primitive state where "life eats life". He created the mutants on purpose.

In Covenant, A. I. played by Fassbender created aggressive life forms.

In Pandorum, 60,000 passengers plus crew members board an interstellar ark, the Elysium, headed for an another planet to colonize it. Because of the length of the trip, the passengers were all placed in extended hypersleep.

In Covenant, the ship Covenant is headed for a planet Origae-6, with 2,000 colonists in stasis and 1,140 human embryos in cold storage.

A great piece of obscure Lovecraftian cinema

[jeffcostudent · 7/10 · 20 November 2022]

This piece does a wonderful job of adapting some of Lovecraft's lesser known but no less important works, including those focusing on evolution, social degradation, religion, duty, memory and the curious need for humans to do evil. The film quickly moves from standard space-horror fair (wake up from cryo, there's something aboard that shouldn't be), to a series of tense action sequences and engaging dialogue. The more abstract pieces of the story will be distracting to those who care more about plot than feeling, but the character work is vibrant, and the tone is despairing, without being grueling.

If you were disappointed by Promethus as much as I was, you'll enjoy this intellectual but unpretentious meditation on the future of humanity and its exploration of isolation and insanity.

Very scary, one of the best sci fi horrors.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 9/10 · 12 April 2011]

I very nearly allowed myself to be put off this movie by all the negative press and reviews which it received. I took a chance and bought the Blu Ray of it, wow, I was expecting a movie similar to Event Horizon or Sunshine, what i got was something way more impressive. I found myself with that scared sunken in the stomach feeling that i've not had for many a year, and certainly not had with recent horror films. What a very clever idea, strong acting, gorgeous effects, very novel to have such a mix of a cast. I find it very frustrating when i expect a lot from a film and don't get it, here the reverse has happened. I think most people would enjoy this. Think Dr Who Ark in Space meets Silent Hill, perhaps that's an idea of the mix. 9.5/10.00

I would rename this 'Panboredom'.

[simmmz · 1/10 · 11 October 2010]

I was lured towards 'Pandorum' with the expectation of a good value science fiction/horror. But nay, was this poor-trite…

Ben Foster plays astronaut Corporal Bower, who wakes up on a desolate spacecraft, all alone, with no memory of who he is and how he got there. Whilst exploring the forsaken ship, he comes across fellow survivors and an evil presence that slaughters them one by one.

The premise of 'Pandorum' is reminiscent of 'Event Horizon', 'Alien', 'The Descent', 'Sunshine' and numerous other sci-fi/horror affairs…and it has absolutely no new ideas. But a genre film is a genre film, and that's not what makes 'Pandorum' bad.

German director, Christian Alvart, creates a despairing and unsettling tone that is effective in the first 10 minutes of the film. It reminded me a lot of Alien 3 (which I consider a pretty awful film too). But Fincher, Alvart ain't. 'Pandorum' rapidly deteriorates into an awful mess. I knew this was going no-where fast, but alas, it went beyond nowhere into another stratosphere of shiite-ness. The action sequences were impossible to make sense of, the art design was tacky, the creatures looked SO nonthreatening and false, and the ending was a real fizzer. It has an awful visual style to boot, and character development = zill.

Being impressed with Ben Foster on 'Six Feet Under', this was such a disappointment for someone I always saw as an up-and-coming star. He is utterly forgettable. And god knows why Dennis Quaid signed onto this.

This is complete trash, but not of the enjoyable, tongue in cheek kind. It is very rare that I feel compelled to walk out of a film before it ends. I want to get my money's worth…but after 45 minutes, I was completely unengaged and there is absolutely nothing to reel you back in. 'Pandorum'? I would rename this 'Panboredom'. I hated it.

A great addition to the sci-fi genre.

[ninfanwill · 7/10 · 13 January 2010]

I have been waiting to see this one for too long now and finally got to see it last night. It was worth the wait though because this was a great addition to the sci-fi genre. I've heard comparisons to Aliens and I guess I can see why, but then again when you set a movie in space and have some sort of creature involved you're instantly granted the Aliens comparison. By the end of this flick it certainly makes a name for itself and stands on it's own. It was a head trip of a movie that left me wondering who was crazy or if I was the one who was crazy! Ben Foster as Bower is the first to wake up followed by Dennis Quaid as Payton. They're vaguely aware of where they are and what they're doing but it's still pretty fuzzy. They begin thinking that they're the only ones left alive on the ship but soon realize that not only are there other survivors, there's also some very strange human looking creatures that are out for blood. Pieces of the story are slowly revealed as the characters remember more about what's going on and you start to get the bigger picture. We also learn about pandorum which is a form of insanity brought on by hyper sleep. It's here where the movie starts to mess with your head. You start wondering who may have pandorum, or maybe everyone has it, or maybe you have it! It's a great twist to the movie as it threw me off balance in what to expect. Unfortunately it becomes clear who has what too soon and took away a little from the ending.

Speaking of the ending, the big reveal at the end was satisfying. I personally didn't see it coming but I was so involved in the movie that I hadn't even been thinking about it. This made it a surprise for me but it may be too easy for others to figure out. While the plot may not drop any great twists onto the general viewing public, the performances of all the characters are strong enough to carry this one. I like a good spaceship flick and this one doesn't disappoint. The creatures in the flick look great as well and while they are a definite threat, it still felt as if they were only a nuisance in the grand scheme of things. I don't think the movie would have suffered one bit if you had taken them out as there's enough human characters ready to backstab each other that the tension would still be there. The creatures only end up adding to this tension which isn't a bad thing.

You're confronted on every side by questions this way. Obviously you can't trust bloodthirsty monsters but some of the remaining survivors don't seem to be a much better option. While this may not be the most original movie out there, I still recommend it. Sure we've all seen the creature on the space ship flicks and I'm sure that lots of you will see the ending coming miles away but with strong acting and a great look and feel to the movie you'd be missing something if you didn't add this to your collection.

why haven't i heard about this movie?

[quibbles · 8/10 · 29 June 2010]

why haven't i heard about this movie? someone should have made some noise for this! seeing a movie with no expectations makes it greater then it might deserve but i think i would rate it high even with high expectations.

the first half is extremely creepy and i would compare it to Alien. yea yea, fan boys will ofc hate me, but i have seen no other movie that i would compare to Alien except this one. i have never seen a movie that kept me so focused. i was trying to eat my dinner as i started this movie and i think it took me 1h+ to get the dinner down cause i didn't wanna look away. the story isn't even that original (are there original movies left to be made?) but the pieces picked from stories already told are put together in a really awesome way which makes it feel new and fresh. i think you could make 5-6 movies by picking out parts of Pandorum and developing them. I'm glad they kept it as one compact, awesome flick!

Good idea/atmosphere/etc - but wrecked by insane editors ...

[Vic_max · 6/10 · 4 October 2009]

Pandorum has a lot of great elements going for it as a sci-fi movie: a captivating start, great atmospherics, a clear plot goal, nice visual designs and a well-known celebrity in a key role. These things I loved.

But my god, after the movie got going, the editing cuts (how one camera view transitions to the next one) went crazy. Not "cool" crazy, just crack-head crazy. You'd be watching one critical thing and then suddenly/unexpectedly, you're watching something else - and you're confusingly trying trying to piece together what you just saw with what you're seeing now.

One of the worst instances of this happens when the two main characters lose radio contact with each early in the movie. Suddenly, you're "cut" into the middle of a critical conversation where they've got back in contact. How is that interesting to the viewer?

Another problem is with the revelation of the background story. There are a several key moments when the characters slowly learn the story about what's going on. When they speak it out loud, the miraculous revelations come across as weak and unmoving instead profoundly jarring. This is probably the fault of the director and editors; the actors seemed to be pretty capable of what they were given.

I'm a big sci-fi fan, so of course I had to see this. Is it worth seeing in the theater? Only if you're starved for seeing a space-oriented sci-fi movie right this minute (my case). Otherwise, wait for the DVD. If you're not a sci-fi fan, listen to the critics: the approval rating is in the low 20%-30% range.

Also, be careful about the rating on IMDb - check out "user ratings" link and you'll see that the highest scores (almost an average of "9") come from those under 18 years old. The scores drop as you go up in age.

Amazing! Totally unexpected!

[jerfrog · 10/10 · 28 September 2009]

I went into this film not knowing much about it to be honest. I was really only interested in it when I heard it was set in space. This film is one of the most terrifying action/horror/sci-fi movies I have seen in a very long time, but that's not the best part! The best part is the intriguing story with some amazing twists! Some are obvious and at least one is just completely unexpected, but none of them feel overly typical. Ben Foster is really really good in this and I must say that he is getting much better at picking roles, with 3:10 to Yuma and now this! One thing that really stuck out to me also, was how much some of it reminded me of the game Dead Space, don't read into that too much as far as story goes, it's just that there are a few elements that I think were inspired by the game, and if you have played Dead Space, I think you will know what I mean when you see it. This movie was good, really good, and finally gave me the space horror/fiction fix I have been craving since the last good space movie, Sunshine, by Danny Boyle. Go see this movie!

derivative, but on its own terms it's got some chills and cool things, and acting

[Quinoa1984 · 7/10 · 17 August 2010]

Watching Pandorum, it made me think back to other science fiction and as well horror movies ('horror' isn't listed as one of the genres of the film on IMDb though it should), but this is not entirely a negative for the movie itself. It has the same dark tunnels and claustrophobic lighting of the Descent and Alien (and the creatures of the Descent), it has the surreal nature of Event Horizon (as many have noted), and it has a take on humanity that is grim and cynical that has been seen in countless sci-fi. But the film also carries with it some genuinely good actors like Ben Foster, this instance playing a more heroic character instead of his usual villain, and Dennis Quaid as Peyton who is caught in the conflict of trying to help guide Foster's Bower and another man who has come out of one the tubes that has kept the astronauts in hyper- sleep.

It's a deep-on-in-space story that, by its last reel, gets pretty silly and crazy, especially once the pandorum of the title sets in. It's a disease that infects the part of the brain that goes bonkers, and this is illustrated at one point by a man on another ship years before who had it and jettisoned hundreds of people out in to space (you know, cause he thought the ship was in trouble, that sort of thing). So the basic thrust of the plot is: find who else is alive (and sane) on the ship, and try not to get killed by these ravenous mutant-radioactive- whatever men who are almost like punk-rock orcs from Lord of the Rings. At the same time there's another layer of conflict on the fact that the ship was never really meant to find another crew or look for something missing, they *are* meant to be missing crew.

Pandorum uses its 30 million dollar budget like a smart B-movie, and it shows. It's actually not as stupid or inane as any given number of sci- fi from the past several years, even as it does dip into being really stupid in certain parts (and you'll know which). And sure, the filmmakers do end up dipping into the "WHAT A TWIST!" batch in the last ten minutes or so, one of them, about the location of the ship and who really has pandorum, being a real doozy. Some of it may not even make much sense, but this disorientating feeling is part of what makes the film work. It may be more difficult to get others excited about stock characters, such as the lone ruthless a-hole survivor played by Eddie Rouse who pops up, says some exposition about what's really going on, and then captures the heroes and threatens their lives as he's a survivalist. He is a walking conventional, but Eddie Rouse is so good in the role that it's a big assist in elevating the material.

A lot of this is elevated by the players, and by some really effective cinematography that brings out the dizzy and dark nature of the ship and the places they come across, and how faces look in blue and green lights. It's like a cinematographer's fun-house, and this goes a long way in distinguishing the material as well. It's not anything truly essential in science-fiction-horror-out-in-space, but for genre fans it shouldn't come as a disappointment for all things considered. It's a good-fun-unpretentious movie about people going crazy out in space.

There is so much GOOD Science fiction out there

[JoeB131 · 1/10 · 27 January 2010]

So how in the name of C'Thulhu does crap like this keep getting made.

Okay, we have another variation on the Alien plot. People are trapped on a ridiculously huge ship with bad lighting, being hunted by poorly defined monsters and big surprise, there is a tie in to a video game.

And a movie like this wouldn't be complete without the characters being dumped into a pit full of human bones....

The problem is that when you have a movie based on the video game mentality, you get the plot of a video game. Chase, fight, revelation, rinse, wash, repeat.

What you don't get is character development, moral choices, etc that you see in truly great Science Fiction. Have any of these people ever read a book?

I just don't understand why GOOD sci-fi can't be made these days.

[travis-detert · 3/10 · 25 December 2009]

A rating of 3 is only suitable because I kind of liked some of the idea of the movie, but why can't we have some sci-fi that doesn't completely come off as predictable alien horror? Seriously, I think that there's a lot more creative ideas out there that justify production than this film.

Either it's the illogical outcomes or the means to get there that disappoint, but in the end it's all the same plots rehashed over and over again. We get it, we go out into space and maybe meet some hostile aliens, or something bizarre happens. But how about something unpredictable for once, like something perhaps that is on par with movies from the 70's and dare I say 80's as well.

I think Hollywood has officially run out of ideas if this movie made it to production, and let alone had what are seemingly recognizable actors. The fact that movies like this are still being made and receive 7/10 ratings on IMDb is saddening and disappointing.

I for one would love to just see a new plot for once. I have had better dream/nightmares with more coherent and original plots than Hollywood seems capable of producing with multimillion dollar budgets.

Seriously, how is such inane screenplay writing possible on that kind of budget? I mean, c'mon. Some of the best movies ever made were done on tiny budgets.