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"Gelatt achieves that essential character balance chemistry
amongst all the crew, with everyone particularly natural and believeable in
their roles (first amongst equals are Wu, Nyqvist and Wydra). Digital footage as
captured by the various sources (mission-record sensors, helmet-cams, handheld
devices) did not faze cinematographer Enrique Chediak, whose crisp images and
mastery of both tight, shiny space and the vastness of the universe are
beautiful; barely a frame of Europa Report belies the fact that it was a
relatively low-budget work. Cordero’s feature-length English-language debut is
terrific entertainment." ...Simon Foster, Screen-Space
"It’s just the look and feel of the film, in which the
actions of the crew and the memories of the scientists are invested with such
emotion and realism — with the thought that this could really happen — are so
unique. These characters are more than willing to risk their lives to further
advances in science. That’s a passion and dedication that fuels Europa Report,
and Cordero makes the most of it." ...Bill Goodykoontz, Arizona
Republic
"The real strength of the film comes in the performances by
each member of the six-person crew - and in particular their realistic
interactions with each other. Sharlto Copley (District 9) plays the
junior engineer and his interaction with his gruff Russian chief played by
Michael Nyqvist (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) feels very authentic.
Chinese-American actor Daniel Wu (The Banquet) gives a good turn as the ship's
commander. The film is notably a co-production with China and his inclusion in
the cast is a likely nod to that country's enormous audience."
...Ryland Aldrich, Screen Anarchy
"Cordero definitely keeps you watching, and by the time the
crew arrives on the icy, striated and radiation-dosed surface of Europa, and
begins to detect signs that something may have noticed their arrival, the story
has largely come together. After its own cool, high-tech fashion, “Europa
Report” does explore some pretty big questions in the end, and depicts the
spirit of scientific discovery and heroic sacrifice in more compelling fashion
than most mega-budget space operas." ...Andrew O'Hehir, Salon
magazine
"The performances—particularly those of Sharlto Copley,
Anamaria Marinca, and Michael Nyqvist—handily lend dramatic support to Cordero’s
camerawork, though the script reveals too little about most of the astronauts’
lives back on Earth. Still, the relative ease of the crew’s interactions aboard
the ship before things go awry sells Europa Report as a compelling
fictional documentary, peering into the characters’ quest to achieve greatness."
...Aisha Harris, The Dissolve
"The international cast, including Anamaria Marinca and
Daniel Wu as the mission’s skillful pilots and Michael Nyqvist as its
grave-faced engineer, spend plenty of time gasping and looking wide-eyed as
their prospects for survival grow dim — but within that dynamic they give off a
reasonably calculated air. As they ponder the best means of addressing various
turning points in the mission, including exterior damage to their ship and
whether it’s worth venturing onto the surface of Europa to explore lights in the
distance, Europa Report allows its dramas to accumulate at a steady pace."
...Eric Kohn, IndieWire
"The actors are all superb as the early sections allow them
to develop full-blown characters whose personalities come into play once the
many crises hit. Anamaria Marinca stands out as a commander who makes decisions
slowly and strives for consensus. Michael Nyqvist has become withdrawn following
the first tragic episode while Karolina Wydra’s marine biologist still cannot
contain her near giddy enthusiasm for the journey... Chediak’s cinematography is
crisp, focused and breathtaking. Camera angles always make sense and help create
the claustrophobia a viewer gradually start to feel. Caballero’s design for the
space craft looks plausibly utilitarian. More than anything, Cordero‘s Europa
Report restores the wonder to space." ...Film critic Kirk
Honeycutt
"While Europa Report does quite well dramatically
without breaking any new ground, its great strength is how striking it is
visually and the stratagems it employs to make itself memorable.
Determined to create as realistic a look for the spacecraft as possible, not to
mention a credible moonscape for Europa, production designer Caballero consulted
closely with scientists from NASA, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory and SpaceX, the
Elon Musk-founded private space travel company. The results feel convincing in a
way other films have not always managed." ...Kenneth Turan,
Los Angeles Times
"The cast all do fine work here, with Nyqvist doing a fine
job as the increasingly claustrophobic man on the ship. The dynamic that exists
between what starts off as a team is interesting as it evolves throughout the
movie, and the visuals consistently impress even when degraded to stay in
keeping with the format." ...rockshockpop.com
"Gelatt's script feels rooted more in fact than fiction,
making the crew, in turn feel more believable with the end result that it
matters to us when they start to get picked off one by one. Given the general
documentary feel of the film, however, the scoring by Bear McCreary, though
enjoyable in its own right, feels rather heavy for the material, although it
pays off in the tension-packed scenes towards the end, and space-movie fans will
doubltess enjoy the small nod to Kubrick it contains. Fans of monster movies
expecting the usual space carnage will be disappointed but those who liked the
slow-burn tension of Gravity will find plenty to enjoy."
...Amber Wilkinson, Eye for Film
"Europa Report is a film about people, about their humanity - not
hardware. It succeeds in great part because it's blessed with a gifted ensemble
cast that includes Christian Camargo, Daniel Wu, Michael Nyqvist, and Anamaria
Marinca." ...Tirdad Derakhshani, Philadelphia Inquirer
"Kubrick’s masterpiece moved so slowly that it was something
of an endurance test, even for avid sci-fi fans. Europa Report, by
contrast, is brisk, thrilling and ultimately terrifying. And unlike 2001, it’s
(mostly) grounded firmly in one of the most exciting areas in modern science.
The idea that life evolved independently on Europa is perfectly plausible—and
that makes what would be a fun and exciting film in any case all the more worth
watching." ...Michael D. Lemonick, Time magazine
"Europa Report is one of the most immediately
involving science-fiction films in recent memory. Filmed in the format of a
Discovery Channel style documentary but with found-footage elements, Ecuadorian
director Sebastian Cordero draws you in with an incredibly realistic, seemingly
well-researched take on current-day space travel, and then keeps you at an
exhilirating choke-hold for the rest of the film’s 90 minute running time."
...Movie Mezzanine Christopher Runyon
"This compelling and claustrophobic film is directed by
Sebastian Cordero with a thought-provoking screenplay by Philip Gelatt. Looking
for life on other planets is a staple in science fiction films, and here there
are a few new twists and turns. By the end of this film, we shared the
astronaut's awe at what could be and also were convinced that outer space is
both a very mysterious and a very dangerous place." ...Film critics
Frederic & Mary Ann Brussat
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