Mediocre, Cliché, Sci-fi

Rating: 5/10 (19 March 2017)

This is how big Hollywood studios do science fiction. They dumb it down, water it down, add big name star power, add some explosions and action, add some cheesy romance, add a mandatory sex scene, and turn it into inoffensive pabulum for the masses.
In fact, I have trouble even calling this move science fiction since there is so very "science" involved. Grade school level astronomy students should be capable of laughing at this movie, but the real problem is that it's more of a cheesy romantic comedy than sci-fi. The bulk of the movie is dedicated to following the evolution of the romantic relationship between the two main characters. This choice means that a lot of the actually interesting things that could have explored - such as moral dilemmas, the effects of extreme isolation, the fragility of humanity in the face of space - were all shuffled to the back-burner.
After the movie expends itself on the romance story, a cliché filled action sequence wraps it up in a neat little package, and the ending ties it up with a bow.
In summary, it's a visually interesting romance story stuffed into a sci-fi package. I suppose if I was looking for a romance story involving Jennifer Lawrence, I'd be all over it. But I wanted a science fiction movie. I feel a bit duped. A generous 5/10.