No evidence of this emerges though, and Helene is also quick to disregard the idea of trying to save anyone else once Alex rejects it.Īlex really only gains a moral perspective on the project once he meets Helene. He describes Helene as different from the others, insinuating that she has a quality that they cannot possibly possess. It does seem strange, and a little convenient, that Alex doesn’t see the need to save any of the other Orbiter subjects. There’s no suggestion that Celeste is home to any native species, but the word colonise has such an embedded historical context in our understanding that it immediately conjures up atrocities committed by humans, against other humans for the want of land and resources. Naturally, the Orbiter project would want individuals with powerful colonialist mentality to ensure that they are prepared to fight for whatever it is they find when they finally reach Celeste. The use of the word “colonise” is another interesting aspect (it’s a word used throughout the film), and the more we learn about how Helene came to exist in the world, the more appropriate it becomes. This is all new to Helene, and seeing through her eyes allows us to identify with her. On Helene’s departure from the ship, Ruis-Zorilla uses the camera to give the audience Helene’s dazed and confused perspective – the shot sliding in and out of focus, everything is a little too bright. One of Orbiter 9 ’s most tense and memorable sequences takes place in this simple, yet beautifully achieved set up – as Helene and Alex attempt to hide behind a static wolf image, knowing the slightest movement will give them away.ĭirector Ruiz-Zorilla also focuses in on his characters within the film, from the stoic Helene to the more emotionally driven Alec. In this future world (where humans have destroyed Earth) counselling is delivered via a mesmerising wolf hologram, projected onto a two way mirror. One key example of this is within the counselling room. Rather than relying on costly explosions or producing huge set pieces, Orbiter 9 utilises a few key locations, innovative graphics and clever lighting set-ups to achieve a distinct look. Orbiter 9 is reminiscent of shoe-string budget sci-fi films – in addition to the aforementioned Moon, Danny Boyle’s Sunshine also springs to mind. Far from the mission to seek a new planet and colonise it, Helene and Alec are now pushing back against government forces that are hiding a huge secret. Quickly, it becomes apparent that something doesn’t add up, and that Helene’s journey may not be what she has been led to believe it is. The two are immediately drawn to one another, eating dinner and then spending the night together. With her parents bidding her goodbye a few years ago due to a shortage of oxygen (via video message – how intimate), Helena believes them to be dead, leaving only herself to guide the ship to Celeste and ‘colonise’ the planet.Īs she becomes dangerously close to running out of oxygen herself, Helene’s ship is intercepted by an engineer, Alex ( Alex Gonzalez), who has come to repair the broken oxygen circuits. Seeming to walk in the footsteps of films such as the 2016 film Passengers and Duncan Jones’ Moon, Orbiter 9 follows the experiences of Helena ( Clara Lago), the lone passenger on a spaceship bound for an uninhabited planet named Celeste. Having said that, this review will be as spoiler light as possible… within reason. It’s not ideal to include spoilers within a review, but with Netflix’s new original film Orbiter 9 ( directed by Hatem Khraiche Ruiz-Zorilla) it’s almost impossible not to allude to the several plot twists that are pretty integral to any sort of discussion of the film’s narrative.
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