'Stowaway' is a science fiction thriller that follows the crew aboard the Kingfisher, - Zoe, a medical researcher, David, the ship's biologist and Marina, the ships commander. Their mission is to reach Mars, but unbeknownst to them Michael, a support engineer, has accidentally launched with the crew.
The film opens by showing the crew of the Kingfisher launch and reach an international space station, to which they attach their ship and start to settle in and get ready for their journey to Mars. Soon after Marina discovers Michael, unconscious and stowed away, by the carbon dioxide removal assembly. As she tries to get him down from his harness, Michael drops, breaking Marina's wrist and damaging the CDRA. Zoe and David come to Marinas rescue and patch up Michaels injuries. Soon after, he wakes and is in shock about what has transpired. The crew come to his aid, calming him and reassuring him. The group bond with Michael and he spends his time helping out where he can.
Marina soon discovers that the CDRA has been damaged irreparably, meaning that the carbon dioxide cannot be scrubbed from the air, forcing Marina to order David to cultivate his algae samples to sustain the crew. After David reluctantly uses all of his samples, only enough algae survives to sustain a third crew member. Marina talks with David and Zoe, informing them that the passengers on board cannot be sustained and will asphyxiate before reaching Mars, also stating that Michael needs to be sacrificed. Opposing the notion, Zoe convinces the crew to wait 10 days for mission control to come up with a solution so as not to sacrifice anyone.
After 3 days, David explains the situation to Michael, offering him a painless lethal injection. Learning of the development, Zoe asks Michael to hold off in case they find a solution. As the ship the crew arrived with is attached to the Kingfisher and used as a counterbalance to form artificial gravity via centripetal force, Zoe suggests climbing the tethers to the attachment to retrieve the liquid oxygen that may still be in the tank. The mission is considered too risky, but ultimately accepted, as David reveals the rest of the algae samples to have died, meaning that there would be enough oxygen only for two passengers. Zoe and David perform the extravehicular activity, filling up the tanks, yet are forced to flee back due to a high-energy solar flare, leaving one of the tanks behind. Before re-entering the ship, Zoe loses the filled up tank.
After regrouping, the crew realise that one person must retrieve the tank that was left behind, so that the other three can survive. Going back for the tank is a suicide mission, due to the high level of radiation the person will be exposed to. Zoe insists on retrieving the tank, as Marina cannot make the climb due to her broken arm and Michael is untrained. She successfully fills and brings back the tank, shares a look with Marina and succumbs to radiation poisoning, spending her final moments gazing at Mars in the distance.
'Stowaway' is a slow paced science fiction film that delves into exploring an uncomfortable and difficult moral dilemma. The three trained crew of the Kingfisher are shocked to discover a fourth member on board, yet are shown to be very sympathetic to the situation. Everyone welcomes Michael, understanding that it was not by choice that he finds himself in the situation. Marina is not the first to demonstrate concern, yet it can be felt that she bears the brunt of it, as the ships commander. As the story progresses, her worries are justified as she discovers the irreparably damaged CDRA unit and is show to have to already make the difficult decision of requesting David to sacrifice his research by way of using his algae samples in order to provide for the crew. As the situation worsens and the algae expire, Marina is forced to face the situation that they are in and inform the other crew members of what needs to be done. Here the problem plays out via David and Zoe, the former presenting the instinct to survive, a utilitarian approach by trying to ensure the best outcome for the greatest number of people, and the latter holding out hope, unwilling to consider taking someone's life.
As the crew struggle to do everything that is practically possible to ensure the survival of the entire crew, giving up their research, risking their safety and the ships integrity by trying to retrieve the oxygen, the audience is faced with the harsh reality of the situation, - no matter their good intentions or practical feats, not everyone will survive the journey to Mars. Here the film excels at providing for an uncomfortable tension, forcing an unpleasant decision to be made either way, pressuring the viewer to understand that there are situations with no good solutions, coercing the participants to reach an unsettling and costly compromise.
The film invites the viewer on a journey, as we travel with the crew from lift-off from earth, to them settling in on the larger space station. Every step of the way feels realistic, from the crew coping with lift-off, to them seeing the earth from outer space for the first time to doing the routine duties that are necessary aboard the spacecraft. 'Stowaway' also delivers on providing a sense of claustrophobia, as the first time the crew make their way aboard the larger ship, there is a slightly cramped feeling and we are left feeling trapped. Conversely, the movie manages to inspire the genuine sense of being in outer space through well produced and inserted moments of illustrating their surroundings, showing the crew gazing at the stars or when attempting their dangerous trek on the tethers.
The cast comprises of Toni Collette as Marina Barnett, the commander of the ship and the hard-headed leader of the crew. Collette's Marina represents the decision maker, the point of contact for the audience in grounding the situation and for providing the realistic turn of events that has transpired. Collette portrays Marina as a pragmatic individual, yet does not shy away from exposing her humanity as the decisions that she has to make leave a lasting impact on her.
Anna Kendrick portrays Zoe Levenson, the crews medical support and researcher. Before the crew are faced with any issues, Zoe is portrayed as the more cheerful of the crew, occasionally exposing her more vivacious side and delivering moments of levity. When it comes to resolving the crews quandary, Kendrick portrays Zoe as a very empathetic individual, unwilling to even consider sacrificing a life in order for the others to survive. Ultimately her unwillingness to succumb to surviving at the cost of losing someone else, she makes the ultimate sacrifice and does what she thinks is her duty. By showcasing the unwavering moral stance Zoe has, Kendrick allows the audience to experience the pain and heartbreak that the character is going through, ultimately allowing us to come to terms with what had and needed to be done.
Daniel Dae Kim portrays David Kim, the crews biologist. David is portrayed as the instinct to survive, the argument for ensuring the safety of the greatest numbers. His stance is understandable and the more cautious in terms of preserving the lives of the intended crew of three. Even though David may appear as somewhat cold, due to approaching Michael with a lethal injection, ultimately Dae Kim portrays the character in an understandable and relatable manner. Shamier Anderson portrays Michael Adams, the stowaway that unwittingly has jeopardised the mission to Mars. As he is without fault, it would be easy to dismiss Anderson's character as simple and uninteresting, however Michael is portrayed as an individual of character, as he is ready to help wherever he can and almost gives up his own life in order to preserve the safety of the rest.
The success of 'Stowaway' rests largely on the shoulders of the crew, as it is imperative that the dilemma is presented to its full extent, and explored thoroughly so as not to skew perceptions towards any one solution too early into the story. By playing rational and well-informed individuals, the cast of the film do an excellent job at not tipping the scales too much in one direction, thereby delivering a strained experience throughout the feature. It could have been easy to turn 'Stowaway' into a cheaper experience by introducing a more volatile response from some of the crew as to what is happening or by resorting to heightened emotions or even violence. However, by presenting the issue in a calm and unforced manner, 'Stowaway' creates for a deeply introspective and tense experience, delivering an emotional story and excellent performances.
The film presents for a visually engrossing experience, illustrating what life can be like on an interplanetary journey, showing both the mundane tasks that need to be performed, yet remaining true to how extraordinary space travel still is. Delivering both a slow-burning and at times quite fierce story, 'Stowaway' is an excruciatingly tense and exciting film that walks the audience through making tough decisions and provides for a deep discussion on sacrifice and doing what you believe is right.
Score: 3/4
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