Found Footage Movie List #4
#4
Release Date: June 27th, 2013
Genre: Sci-Fi/Suspense/Thriller
**DISCLAIMER: This movie contains language, blood, and depictions of extraterrestrials.**
Summary:
The astronauts William Xu, Rosa Dasque, Dr. Daniel Luxembourg, Dr. Katya Petrovna, Andrei Blok and James Corrigan travel to the moon of Jupiter known as Europa in the spacecraft Europa One. Their assignment is to investigate the existence of life in Europa, based on the discovery of water in the moon. When their communications shut down and their engines are compromised, they get stranded on Europa. Will they be able to fix the engines and return to Earth with their findings?
Hailed as the single most accurate movie about space travel, Europa Report is a fascinating, thought-provoking thriller about a crew of astronauts in search of life outside of Earth.
Seen through the cameras built into their ship, the crew sets off to Jupiter’s moon, Europa, where they believe to have found water and, possibly, a habitat for living beings. Only a few months out into their journey, the crew loses communications with Earth and are left flying solo. After the loss of one of their crewmates, the mission takes a dark turn as they grow closer to their destination. Once there, they find more than they could have ever hoped for – or even wanted.
My initial discovery of this movie came about due to it being produced by Magnet Releasing, one of my favorite film companies, and then I was hooked when I learned Sharlto Copley, an actor I admire, was involved. With these contributing factors I knew I had to see this movie, and when I finally did I was awed by the sheer magnificence that is Europa Report.
There have been many movies about space travel – Apollo 13, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Gravity, etc., – but in my opinion this movie here is the best out of all of them. The found footage aspect makes it seem so much more real than the other movies, and you gain an emotional connection with the characters – feeling their turmoil and strife with being stranded. I gained a real connection to this movie, which is a rarity when it comes to movies in general. It’s easy to love a movie, but not so easy to actually care.
I’m a little embarrassed to admit that I had to watch this movie more than once to understand all of it. It’s one of those movies where if you don’t pay attention, you aren’t going to get it. It’s thick with science and the thrilling wonders of outer space. The latter half of the movie, when they are actually on the moon, there comes into play an element of horror, as signs of something living under the ice begin to appear. You see the camaraderie in the characters as they try to fix their ship and escape the potential threat, the sacrifices they make in order to save one another and prove to the world that there is life on other worlds. In the end you’re left with a feeling of shock and awe, watching those last few seconds with rapt attention to soak in as much as possible from the conclusion of this story.
Earning its #4 spot on my Found Footage Movie List with ingenuity, Europa Report is a truly fascinating Sci-Fi thriller that depicts a story of sacrifice, scientific discovery, and proof that found footage movies are on the up-swing!
-Michael
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