10/18/2023 0 Comments Beyond skyline alien![]() ![]() Technically I can’t say if Beyond Skyline can be compared to Empire Strikes Back, mainly because I haven’t seen the original Skyline. Indeed the lack of explanation for certain aspects of the film might be its biggest flaw, but one that is still easily overlooked. And yet again that assumption is wrong as from the spaceships, to the alien foot soldiers, and to the Pacific Rim-esque explosion of fighting, everything feels like it could be equally at home in a $100 million budgeted movie.ĭon’t be mistaken, if you’re looking for a thoughtful sci-fi film on the level of Arrival or Ex Machina, then Beyond Skyline is not going to be in your wheelhouse. Especially considering the budget was only $20 million. With the acting, direction and writing all at top notch, you might expect the film’s downside to be in its visual effects. And as soon as you throw in Iko Uwais and Yayan Ruhian, the two stars of Gareth Evans’ The Raid, then you’ve got badass bloody fight scenes that are turned up to eleven. Lead by Frank Grillo (of Captain America and The Purge fame), he’s reminiscent of the one-man army you see in the Schwarzenegger and Stallone movies of yore. It also helps that there’s an exceptionally strong cast. Beyond Skyline doesn’t just throw cliches out the window, but rather shoves them into a Heavy Gustav cannon and fires it into outer space. Every so often you start to feel that the story might be headed in a predicable direction, and then BAM! It steers onto a completely different course. Far too many writers and directors often feel that a conflict with aliens isn’t enough, and thus write in some kind of bulls**t nonsense to make characters more “well-rounded.” O’Donnell instead keeps everyone on the same side, realising a team that (mostly) works together is far more likeable to audiences than one that doesn’t.Īnd that’s just one of the cliches he avoids over the action-packed 100 minutes. He also doesn’t make the same mistake that his compatriots make in films of similar ilk and force in unnecessary human conflict. From the bowels of the city subway to the vast expanses of the Indonesian jungles, O’Donnell knows exactly how to use each location to his advantage. God knows where first-time director Liam O’Donnell (who was also the film’s sole writer) honed his craft as the way the numerous action scenes are shot, it seems as if they’ve been done with decades of experience behind them. To say that this film moves at a speed resembling Usain Bolt on cocaine would be an utter understatement. See that synopsis above that (I hope) you just read? All of that takes place in the first 20 or so minutes. Together they must try to avoid the aliens roaming the city streets and escape with their lives. But within minutes their father-son time is rudely interrupted by an alien invasion.Īs the alien ships start scooping up humans by the thousands, Mark and Trent team up with train driver, Audrey (Bojana Novakovic) fellow police officers, Sandra and Garcia (Betty Gabriel & Jacob Vargas) and local hobo, Sarge (Antonio Fargas). With his wife having passed away recently, Mark (Frank Grillo), a police detective, is having a tough time connecting with his son Trent (Jonny Weston). Instead I snapped up a ticket to the UK premiere at Frightfest Halloween and prayed that I hadn’t just taken an unpaid evening off work for nothing! I found those 30 words to be so out of left field that I didn’t even read the rest of the review. Was she high when she watched the movie? Or paid? Or both? How on earth could that line be accurate? The first couple of paragraphs did nothing to assuage this assumption.īeyond Skyline isn’t just one of the best genre films of 2017, it’s one of the best and most ambitious sci-fi action movies I’ve seen in the last decade. ![]() ![]() Predator: Requiem a film that, 10 years later, still acts as my measuring stick for bad movies, I didn’t feel like there was any pressing reason to see it.Īnd so I started to read Kirsten Howard’s review for Den of Geek, expecting Beyond Skyline to receive a score in the 1-2 star category. But considering it was from the guys that directed Aliens vs. To be fair, I haven’t seen the original Skyline. ![]() And watching the sequel to 2010’s Skyline wouldn’t just be stepping over those limits, as much as it would be taking a gold medal winning long jump over them. While it’s true I deeply adore science-fiction in any form, even I have my limits. ![]()
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