Ignore the "Aliens Knockoff" you've been hearing, and just enjoy the movie!

Rating: Null/10 (13 March 2000)

Okay, so you have heard more claims of "Aliens Knockoff" than you know what to do with. So, ignore them. Yes, this is a critter movie in space. That makes it really difficult not to compare it to Aliens. The fact that these critter seem to like the dark allows you to draw even more parallels. But think a moment: What would *your* story feature? Would you buy a race of hyper-intelligent purple cabbages that always sit out in the open and kill people? Nah. Didn't think so. So, make it dark, make them bug-looking. It is a cheap scare, but it always works. Deal with it.
So, that off my chest, I went into this movie with pretty low expectations. It is usually safer that way. But I was treated to a multifaceted movie featuring survival against a barren planet, survival against a dangerous night, and survival against your cutthroat peers. There's a bit of over-played not-so-good guy versus bad guy with-a-heart-of-gold kind of things going on, that smack of an morning soap opera, of course.
But I really enjoyed the two-in-one movie theme. I was sort of dismayed when the Gilligan's Island remake was over, and the movie became yet another bump-in-the-night horror film. But then, the horror film aspect wasn't bad.

All in all, I came away feeling pretty good about the movie.

Plusses: The crash and planetary effects are stunning! Watch these in a theater.
Problems: I could kill the guy who thought the strobe-light intro was needed. The intro requires an epilepsy warning.
You can probably guess who dies...