I have always had a fascination with space and when I saw the trailer for I.S.S. I knew that I had to check it out. This was easier said than done as this was a movie that had a very limited showing at my theatre! Anyway, it ended up being a fun thriller that I think was made more fun by its awesome setting.
How to Download I.S.S.
I.S.S. was released on January 19, 2024. You can expect to be able to download or stream the film from a digital platform such as Apple TV two months later. Click on the Download button at the end of this review and make your choice.
The Movie Review
Setting and Characters
The movie takes place in the modern day and we have American astronaut, Kira Foster arriving at the International Space Station. Kira meets two other American astronauts Christian and Gordon as well as three Russian cosmonauts, Weronika, Nikola, and Alexy who are brothers.
Camaraderie and Tension
We only have those six characters making up the entire cast and I think this was a smart decision as it keeps things much more focused. The movie does a great job of establishing a comradery between the Americans and the Russians. They let it known right away that any politics and BS that is happening down on Earth means nothing on board the ISS as they are a team.
All seems good and people are in good spirits. However, Kira is doing some work and she notices that the USA is being lit up by a nuclear attack! As you would expect, this freaks everyone out big time. The visual of this is spectacular and actually the whole movie looks great, the first time we see Kira looking back on Earth is done so well and we kind of feel that amazement that she does.
Escalating Conflict
Both the USA and the Russian governments get in touch with the people on the space station. As you would expect, things are not good. Both the USA and the Russians are told to take control of the ISS by any means. This is where all the tension of the movie comes into play and at first, it does it very well.
You can tell that they want to ignore what they were told to do, but there is a level of mistrust that just grows and grows. I do think that the Russians are portrayed more as the villains here, but the opening sections where this mistrust starts to happen are done so well and make you feel uncomfortable.
Action and Thrills
The trailer pretty much gives away the fact that all hell breaks loose. I did like how Kira and Weronika tried to work together and get through this, I thought that could have been expanded more, to be honest with you. Clocking in at a little over 90 minutes, I think that they move things along at a quick pace and you are never left with any time to feel comfortable, despite being set on a remote space station, they do make you feel like you are in this with them.
Final Thoughts
I enjoyed I.S.S. I thought that this was a fun thriller and the fact it was set on the International Space Station was what set it apart from other similar thriller movies. I am not sure it would be a movie I would actually buy or be in a rush to watch again. However, I did feel that the setting made seeing it on the big screen really cool, especially when they were looking down at Earth.
