Órbita 9

I really enjoyed this movie, even though the ending was a bit too contrived and bittersweet.

I recommend giving it a shot if you like scifi Spanish movies similar to say, 'Mirage' or are a fan of the twilight zone/black mirror/the outer limits type stories.

'ORBITER 9': Four Stars (Out of Five)

A Spanish science fiction romance about a young woman who's spent her whole life in a space pod, and learns that the reality she's always known is a lie. The film was directed and written by Hatem Khraiche (in his feature film directorial debut). It stars Clara Lago, Álex González, Andrés Parra and Belén Rueda. I found it to be interesting and effectively involving as well.

Helena (Lago) is a young woman who's spent her entire life (since birth) on a space pod sent from Earth to a distant planet. Once there she's told she'll meet other people and have a normal life. Her only communication has been with the ship's onboard computer. That is until a repairman, named Alex (González), arrives on the pod to make needed repairs to it. Helena immediately falls in love with him, having been the only person she's ever met, and Alex feels strong emotions for her as well. That's why he's compelled to tell her the truth, which will expose to Helena that nothing she's believed about her entire reality is true.

The movie proposes great questions about what the greater good is, morally, and how much is an acceptable cost to achieve it. Although the story feels a little reminiscent of other classic sci-fi tales, it still seems mostly fresh and original. The actors all give decent performances in it, and the visuals are beautifully shot as well. The film succeeds at pretty much everything it sets out to do. Still I didn't love it, but I have no real complaints about it either.

No spoilers, I promise. :-)

The big reveal is given away too early in the movie, without enough build up or interesting interactions. From there to the next twist, the movie is pretty slow. It makes some future-looking statements but doesn't delve into any detail enough to be truly thought provoking. Just brings up some common SciFi scenarios and then does nothing with it.

A few more not too bad twists and a fun ending make it worth watching, but sad that it could have been much better.

Great concept, but it wasn't explored as fully as it could have been. The twist was revealed too soon, given how predictable the ending was. I personally would have liked to see more focus on the moral/ethical consequences/repercussions, then it could have really found its niche.

a nice film with a Sci.Fi. pretext, using clichés, a story with too many holes, sketches of acting and a generous theme who has no force to survive to the end. the premise is generous and the the first scenes - a good point. but, maybe, the real problem remains the absence of a clear perspective about the script. because, at the end, it is a kind of salad. moral dilemma, selfishness, a drawing of pink love story, an end who seems be generous improvisation for a project without clear sense. short, a strange film. or only expression of good intentions. because , except the desire to use too many subjects, it gives nothing else. except an easy love story, confuse, unrealistic and too modest to be interesting.