Boring film-making - Interesting concept - Blatant copy

Rating: 3/10 (31 October 2017)

'Life' suffers from one of the common problems that most films in the recent decade have suffered from: boring film-making. This movie could have made a great contribution to the genre that 'Alien' birthed decades ago but it lacks any variation in the ways the film-makers use the camera. What I've noticed is that recently film'makers are lazy with the camera. I believe this because these films all look the same: they tend to fill the frame with the characters and don't bother pulling back from the close- up/medium shot to capture the setting to create ATMOSPHERE - and to me, the atmosphere creates a feeling of a film, the feeling creates a personal connection and if that connection resonates within my mind (and enjoy that feeling), I've watched an (at least) good film. These film just cut between obscure shots and close-ups of the actors and don't give the viewer to capture the atmosphere of the space within the film and lose that essential connection a good film always has.
The story very linear and predictable - until the end and I liked the twist at the end because it was a great way to cause misconception with the camera. Jake Gyllenhaal, as usual, provides a good performance but is limited by the script. Ryan Reynolds is good as Ryan Reynolds. I especially like Ariyon Bakare as the father of the alien, his character was good.
Good things exist within this movie but because of the lack of atmosphere and style, I was checking my watch throughout the entirety of it. BORING