PANDORUM Review

PANDORUM is sheer terror. It’s more than just mutants chasing the characters. It’s one helluva trip watching the walls of psychological twists and surprises slowly become unraveled as the need for survival gets closer and closer to reality. PANDORUM is… clever, cunning, and vicious. It’s an original work that comes from paying tributes to some of the beloved sci-fi horrors of the past.

Two astronauts awaken in a hyper-sleep chamber aboard a seemingly abandoned spacecraft. It’s pitch black, they are disoriented, and the only sound is a low rumble and creak from the belly of the ship. They can’t remember anything: Who are they? What is their mission?
With Lt. Payton (Quaid) staying behind to guide him via radio transmitter, Cpl. Bower (Foster) ventures deep into the ship and begins to uncover a terrifying reality. Slowly the spacecraft’s shocking, deadly secrets are revealed…and the astronauts find their own survival is more important than they could ever have imagined.

It’s interesting to see how the story progresses, from waking up in a state of not knowing, to the mission of reaching the reactor while staying alive, to breaking down the walls of the mystery of where they actually are. The story by Travis Milloy and Christian Alvart may have a few scenes reminiscent to Pitch Black, Aliens, and The Desent. Some may be caused by the VFX and the looks and the personality of the mutants, while some, like Bower walking amongst the creatures, just plainly reminds us of those movies and more. But for every minute they try to figure things out, there’s an equal amount of minute of danger that will get you running for your life.
The set is highly elaborate, from one hallway to another, one functional room to another, we get treated with what would happen once they enter certain areas of the ship, each one has a story, each one has its threats and challenges.

At first I find the interaction or the dialogue between Payton (Dennis Quaid) and Gallo (Gigandet) to be not as appealing to watch as the journey that Bower (Foster), Manh (Le) and Nadia (Traue) had to endure to get to the reactor but Payton and Gallo eventually become the key to the answer and the audience won’t get to see that until later on in the movie because most of the time, just like Bower, Manh, and Nadia, the audience will be kept guessing with occasional thrill fest thanks to those ugly lookin’ mutants.

The argument between Payton and Gallo gives you a sense of heightened tension, it escalates into madness. You start to question which of them is saying the truth, if either one of them makes any sense at all and at one point it seems like they’re about to kill each other. Gallo keeps messing with Payton’s head and Payton’s stubbornness resists it. Two angry guys clash in one locked space. Great character study, an entertaining, pivotal part of the movie. It may not provide the most adrenaline rush but it’s a chance for Quaid and Gigandet to elevate their acting skills.

Foster has always been an under-appreciated actor in my book, his willingness to accept the physical demands will earn your respect. As the only one who could save the ship in a technical manner, Foster gives his character determination but with a little bit of hint of frustration, he keeps being haunted by the memory of his wife, he understands that the new planet, the so-called new home is it,… there’s no turning back because there’s nothing left to turn back to.
My only disappointment is I wish we could get to know more of Nadia and Manh just as much, I understand one is meant to just be a kick-ass heroine while the other is a kick-ass Asian agricultural worker, stereotypical if you ask me, the movie does try to make some effort but in the end they’re nothing but a couple of bodyguards guiding Bowler.
PANDORUM may not win many viewers, but it will be a cult hit for those who love the mythology.

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