Tropic Sprockets / Slingshot

By Ian Brockway

Mikael Håfström (1408) directs the space thriller “Slingshot” starring Casey Affleck and Laurence Fishburne. [Showtimes and trailer at Tropiccinema.com] It is a puzzle of a film. Unfortunately, the film’s endless twists and turns tires the audience’s logic to an extreme degree as to become nonsensical. For the most part, the audience is only presented with Casey Affleck’s deflated and forlorn facial expressions combined with Fishburne’s fixed glare.

John (Affleck) second in command on board the Odyssey a ship bound for Saturn’s moon, Titan, in the hopes of saving man from the devastation of climate change.

John is in hibernation due to the length of the ship’s mission, almost a year. The Odyssey also carries Nash (Tomer Capone) and Captain Franks (Laurence Fishburne). John is having a very difficult time in hibernation. It exhausts him. Moreover, he wakes up disorientated and depressed, thinking he did something critical and unforgivable to harm his relationship with girlfriend Zoe (Emily Beecham).

Upon exiting the hibernation capsule, John endures a loud percussive explosion, and it is evident that some force or object struck the ship. Captain Franks is unconcerned, but Nash is worried. John does a series of routine checks and enters a second hibernation as scheduled, but this time he exits to hear Nash tell him, they are in fact on a suicide mission. Nash vows mutiny. John tries to stay passive and loyal to the captain but realizes to his horror that Franks has a gun and threatens to kill them both if they refuse to complete their mission.

The narrative shifts back and forth and then back again with each character becoming manic and unhinged but there is little change in John who is invariably depressed and monotone. There are endless scenes of John running around the ship, in complete silence, coupled with him sweating, moaning, and falling to the floor in pain. There is little dramatic tension and some outer space scenery chewing. Which crew member is insane? By the time it is over, strangely, one doesn’t care. Affleck is Invariably wooden and stiff. There is no romantic chemistry with co-star Beecham. Affleck plods about like a wet space noodle.

The film feels as if it is teasing its audience for the sake of teasing with far too many moments of Affleck immobile, depressive, and monotone.

Aside from one fight scene, there is precious little tension.

In space, no one can hear you sigh.

Write Ian at [email protected]

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