Cosmos

Directed by Elliot Weaver & Zander Weaver

2020

Elliander Pictures

An ominous warning of an impending asteroid closely passing by earth opens new sci-fi feature Cosmos which explores first contact and possible extra-terrestrial life in the universe.

Three astronomers - Harry (Josh Ford), Mike (Tom England) and Roy (Arjun Singh Panam) head to the wilderness where they set up camp to begin investigating this astronomical anomaly.

Cosmos explores the first few hours of first contact when the three astronomers accidentally intercept what they believe to be a very faint signal from possibly a distant alien civilisation.

The technical aspects of the film are certainly good. Knowing the low budget and home-made origins of this production, the atmospheric lighting (provided no less by iPads at times) and the cinematography showcase a high quality beyond its resources.

But as the group discuss the importance of their discovery and its wider implications the script also brings us to issues closer to home. Covering male camaraderie, the men open up about their warm relationships which contrasts nicely with the cold reality of the science talk.

From losing jobs and taking responsibility for different actions, the men ask for forgiveness and let bygones be bygones to resolve their personal conflicts.

The production’s main stumbling block, which ensures it never quite lifts off, is a huge percentage of the film ends up being the three protagonists in vehicles talking about their possible discovery. For a long short this could work nicely but for a full 2 hours? Well, for me, although shorter than Neptune’s orbit it was really stretching the idea to its limit at times.

The first 15 minutes started slow with what could have been an exciting tale of space adventure marred by a stream of conversations either in a car or the dark woods. And this continues for its duration.

So, Cosmos sadly doesn’t appear to be sure if it wanted to be Arrival, Primer or Armageddon given a selection of tonal shifts that don’t always work in conjunction with each other. And there is a lot of dialogue shot in close up which unfortunately doesn’t give the film much visual potency.

On the other hand, an orchestral score is emotional and suitably epic and the visual effects make the story easy to understand. This great cinematic soundtrack works well with the overall sound editing and excellent mixing. The crackling of their equipment and strange voices definitely make the film a pleasure on the ears.

Cosmos then ends up being a bit befuddling. Be prepared for a long journey which could you’re your endurance to the limit if dialogue isn’t your particular thing. However, the specific technical jargon (again, like Primer) helps add an air of realism and complexity to the conversations.

However, the production side of things from the score, sound mixing, the lighting and the VFX are all top notch though. So, although this is my first contact with these filmmakers, there’s enough new discoveries to have me looking forward to future encounters with their next projects.

Michael Sales