Nova

Lucky to get 3 stars, must have been made in a garage. I think if your looking for a really good story with a high quality finish you will be happy to skip this one. On a journey to Mars to set up an android colony, android Nova is given a program to mimic human emotions. She struggles to understand and express her feelings to her human crew mates, but another android on board rallies the rest to mutiny against their human masters. Just put that in to fill in the required minimum. The sci-fi flick has difficulty choosing a narrative and struggles to create a world. Do yopurself a favour and skip it.

To be completely honest, I did consider turning it off after a few minutes. But as the film progressed I did not mind the acting style. In fact, it started to provoke feelings. I really do not know why, but I did get pulled into this film.

The plot is cliche, but there is something I cannot put my finger on. I just wanted to keep watching. It might be that the illustration of the moral dilemmas facing the crew is so clear and highlighted. Maybe it is because there is not much else to focus on. Either way it works. I found myself getting emotionally involved in the characters in ways that even star studded casts have failed.

I don't know if my experience is unique or not, but I like this film.

The lead character is Abilene Lamb meaning Grassy Meadow Lamb. But his real name is Chase Pollock which is Chasing Fish. It's just SO dry to watch. The acting is REALLY terrible. Luckily these are supposed to be androids but even a robot in our time has simulated emotions. The character outfits are not even plausible for a crew on a present day shuttle or station. (SERIOUSLY Abilene wearing a white lab coat but also a black cowboy hat with that name? Why not make him spit and speak in a slack jawed southern accent?) The fake eyelashes killed all sense of reality (besides the dry acting). I honestly felt like I was pranked into watching a student film off YouTube but under the heading "a serious Movie." I couldn't finish it. My advice is stick to making YouTube videos and it will look average there. But even on YouTube you'd see more effects and acting.

Fun Fact: Most of the cast are named after places, objects, or things.

No matter the budget, it's a miracle if you can get a film made and worth it if you have something to say. Nova attempts to ask questions about how we treat our own creations, especially at moments of crisis when the choices only become tougher along the way. Aside from the scenes of peril that offer excitement, Nova works best when it leans on its dramatic aspects, most notably with Lelia Anastasia. Her performance as the Captain leading a doomed ship lends authenticity and dimension to a character with both nobility and bias- especially against the AI of the film- played with haunting understatement in the case of Juliet Chevelle's title character. For a shoestring budgeted sci fi film, it's nice to see that it concerns itself with drama between characters and allowing the performances to be the film's greatest special effect.

The film was very entertaining and thought provoking. Androids that go beyond being just robots. It had a very diverse cast which In this case was a fantastic choice. Nova is an android who has a connection with Abilenes (I think that's how you spell it). The solar flares were interesting. Eventually you get to a point where you're not sure who was human or who was a robot. The set was well done. I wonder though if the captain and crew ever make it to Mars. Will there be a sequel? If so I would like to see it explore what happens with the robots and Mars itself and how they explore that idea. It was a fun film.