Review of Europa Report (2013) by Hoops2448 — 01 Sep 2013

The question of what else is out there in the universe is one that has wrapped our collective consciousness ever since Galileo discovered the Earth orbited the sun and we weren't as flat as everyone assumed we were.

Europe Report is a film that tries to answer the question while trying to terrify the viewer with predictable cares thought up years ago. When the crew of the Europa One are cut off from Earth when their communications are destroyed by a solar flare they are forced to do their mission alone, a multi year journey to Europa, a moon of Jupiter where scientists have discovered signs of possible life.

Filled with meaning and deep philosophical questions about our role in this universe, Europa Report doesn't feel like a piece of entertainment, it feels like a science lesson video, a great looking science documentary that doesn't aim to entertain but make you wonder.

It does what it says on the tin and makes you question things but it fails to entertain on a filmic level, it plays like a cliche ridden horror film that ends in a predictable way. The cast are good with the best performances coming from District 9's Sharlto Copley whose devoted family man is an interesting and unique addition to a horror film and he stands out from the pack, Michael Nyqvist also impresses as the guilt ridden and depressive lead engineer on the project.

Embeth Davitz bookends the film as an overly emotional lead researcher down on Earth who provides context and relevance to the mission but all these attempts to make the film seem cosmically important make it a slow exercise in asking questions we cannot possibly know the answer to making for a slow paced exercise in futility.