Pandorum
It hinted at a more interesting film but could never quite drag itself away from off the peg, referential Sci-fi/horror

Pandorum kicks off with two astronauts who wake to find themselves drifting through space with no memory of who they are or what their mission was. Exploring the spacecraft, they encounter several other surviving crew members, and the astronauts start to learn that something has occurred on board which has resulted in fast-moving zombie-like creatures prowling the corridors, causing general mayhem. They spend much of the rest of the film running from the space zombies as well as their own minds, as they suspect that a (largely) mental sickness known as ‘Pandorum’ has affected them.

Constantly confused about whether it’s a zombie film or a psychological thriller, Pandorum ends up literally fighting out its own confusion as mindless space-zombie sequences are cut against more interesting but dialogue-heavy human drama. It feels as if though there was a far more interesting fight going on in the editing suite, which may never fully be explained. Much like the space zombies themselves whose origins are never properly made clear and whose behaviour seemed irritatingly inconsistent. Sometimes they are merely drones, attacking everything they can and at other times we see self-awareness and intelligence.

We are also occasionally treated to a glimpse of a planet earth on the brink of armageddon which seemed compelling, although this only constitutes mere seconds of the runtime. Deeping unsatisfying stuff.

The film’s title, Pandorum, refers to a kind of space sickness that renders its sufferers with a wholly unconvincing cross between a nasty case of RSI and full-blown schizophrenia.  However, the final moments of the film undermine much of what is initially said about this disease, blowing big smoking holes through the plot.

It wasn’t all bad though; Ben Foster gives a solid performance and Dennis Quaid was as reliable as always. They are both let down by some terribly clunky dialogue (“When it’s done, we’re done!”), but muddle through adequately.

Makeup effects, especially on the space-zombies is interesting and, at times, nearly frightening. Sadly the audience are shown too much, too soon for them to be truly terrifying. A trap all too many horror directors have fallen into.

Pandorum references so many Sci-fi and horror films, it would be impossible to mention them all. However, it owes a tremendous debt to Planet of the Apes, which clearly inspired the plot heavily. Indeed the closing minutes of Pandorum feel like a retelling of the iconic final moments of the timeless classic. But Planet of the Apes, this was not.

Pandorum was a deeply frustrating watch.  Throughout, it hinted at a more interesting film but could never quite drag itself away from off the peg, referential Sci-fi/horror. It was over reliant on set-piece action scenes and does not adequately explain many major parts of the plot ultimately leaving the audience frustrated and confused.