Chris Pratt Sci-Fi Film Passengers Leaving Netflix

Audiences have always found ways to disagree about the meaning of stories. Whether translator Emily Wilson is criticizing Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of Homer’s Odyssey or Star Wars fans are arguing over whether Han shot first, viewers regularly interpret the exact same narrative in conflicting ways.

A decade after its 2016 release, Passengers remains defined by that exact split. Critics and moviegoers immediately divided over the premise of the film. Some saw an earnest survival romance about two people stranded on a deep-space colony vessel. Others, including Rebecca Hawkes writing for the Telegraph, viewed Passengers as “a creepy ode to manipulation.” Audiences turned out in large numbers regardless. The production earned over $300 million at the box office on a budget roughly half that size, generating plenty of arguments along the way. Viewers can judge the story for themselves while Passengers remains on Netflix through Aug. 31.

Wish you were here, wish anyone was here

The plot unfolds aboard the Avalon, a commercial starship transporting 5,000 colonists and 258 crew members on a 120-year voyage to the planet Homestead II. Every passenger rests in suspended animation while automated networks guide the vessel. The flight plan calls for reviving the population only when the ship begins its final approach to the colony world.

Disaster strikes 30 years into the transit. The autopilot steers the vessel through an asteroid field, and the deflector shields fail to prevent a heavy collision. The resulting electrical malfunction opens the hibernation pod of mechanical engineer Jim Preston, played by Chris Pratt, 90 years before the scheduled arrival.

Jim soon learns that no other living humans are awake on the Avalon. His only companions are basic tutorial interfaces and an android bartender played by Michael Sheen. Communication with Earth requires 19 years per transmission, and Jim lacks the technical access to reset his hibernation chamber. Facing decades of solitude, he eventually breaks under the isolation and awakens fellow colonist Aurora Lane, played by Jennifer Lawrence.

Director Morten Tyldum frames the situation without presenting the choice as a lighthearted romance. Aurora reacts with understandable shock and despair. The staging positions the story as a high-concept drama that borders on psychological horror.

The narrative contains distinct survival nightmares for each lead. Jim spends months stranded in a cavernous vessel, blocked at every turn by unhelpful automated systems. His endless struggles with robotic customer service feel especially recognizable years after release. For Aurora, the tragedy is even sharper. She boarded the Avalon to write about founding the Homestead II settlement, but Jim’s unilateral action strips away her intended future and leaves her trapped on the ship with the man responsible.

Strong production design and striking space visuals support the drama throughout. The Avalon resembles a sterile, corporate shopping complex combined with clean futuristic architecture. Pratt also shoulders the dramatic burden of carrying the opening hour almost entirely by himself.

The lingering reputation of Passengers rests on the debate it sparks between viewers who see a tragic romance and those who see a disturbing thriller. The movie is streaming on Netflix until Aug. 31.

Source: Polygon