Teleios, 2016.
Directed by Ian Truitner.
Starring Sunny Mabrey, Lance Broadway, T.J. Hoban, Christian Pitre, Mykel Shannon Jenkins, Ursula Mills, Weetus Cren, and Michael Nouri.
SYNOPSIS:
A deep space mining vessel has been adrift for two years. It is suspected the crew brutally killed each other, but the reason for the bloodbath is unknown. A rescue crew is sent to find if there are any survivors, what happened and why.
This movie is classified as action sci-fi, but it’s more of a sci-fi drama. Genetically altered humans, who are considered perfect, have been created by humans and the best of the best are sent into space to explore the universe. In this instance, the crew of the Teleios has been sent to try and figure out what happened to the crew of a mining ship, the Atromitos. When they discover a lone crewman and his Art (what they call robots- short for artificial intelligence), Lulu AH-320, they attempt to discover what happened to the rest of the crew and the precious cargo they have been sent to retrieve.
Sunny Mabrey (Once Upon a Time, Snakes on a Plane), Lance Broadway (Colony, Olympus Has Fallen), TJ Hoban (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia), Mykel Jenkins (Containment), and Christian Pitre star as the crew of the Teleios. Weetus Cren (W.M.D.) is the lone survivor on the mining ship, and Ursula Mills is Lulu, his Art. Michael Nouri (Damages, Flashdance) stars as Nordham, the man back on Earth who sent the crew on the mission in the first place. The crew receive several messages from him about their mission and the importance of recovering the cargo above all else…to the point of making me wonder what he was afraid they might learn from any surviving crew members.
While the story juggles multiple storylines, a common thread through the entire movie is the actions of Iris Duncan. The lone surviving crewman is babbling incoherently and she is assigned to try and get him to talk about what happened to the rest of the crew and the cargo. The acting by Sunny Mabrey is fantastic as she keeps pushing back against the other crew members who want to use more unethical methods to get him to talk. Ultimately, she gets him to talk, but only after allowing a crew member to torture Lulu, who he seems to have an unhealthy connection to.
The pacing is solid and spot on as the psychological drama unfolds on board the ship. The so-called perfect humans begin showing signs of emotions- two become sexually attracted to each other, one becomes forgetful, another angry and another has physical twitches. As the plot unfolds, it takes some unexpected twists and turns and leaves you constantly guessing until the very end.
The visual effects are impressive and reminiscent of an episode of Star Trek or 2001: A Space Odyssey. You feel completely immersed in this futuristic world on board the two ships.
I thought it was a solid movie, with good effects and acting that backed it up. There are some good themes being explored here, but I can’t help but wonder if the filmmakers tried to tackle too much in a film that is just 90 minutes long. Either sharpen the plot up or make the movie a bit longer…and don’t try to sell it as an action flick, when it’s a perfectly good space drama.
Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ ★ ★ / Movie: ★ ★ ★
Tai Freligh – Staff Writer. Follow me on Twitter
Originally published October 5, 2016. Updated April 15, 2018.
