2023 was not the best year for science fiction, but it was also far from the worst. It pleased fans of the genre with a number of worthy films. And some of them were dedicated to space. On the occasion of the International Movie Day, The Universe Space Tech editorial team has prepared a selection of five space movies of 2023 that are worth watching.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3
What is the movie about?
After the destruction of Thanos, the Guardians of the Galaxy settle on Oblivion. However, they do not have a quiet life. The team is attacked and Rocket is seriously injured. To save his friend, Peter Quill embarks on a journey that may be the last for the Guardians.
What makes it interesting
2023 went down in movie history as the year of the decline of comic books’ screen versions. Multi-million dollar Hollywood superhero adaptations failed one after another. The third Guardians of the Galaxy was perhaps the only exception. The movie not only grossed a decent box office, but also received very good reviews.
And this is quite expected, because James Gunn has once again managed to repeat the formula that brought him success. Yes, as befits a Hollywood blockbuster, Guardians of the Galaxy has a lot of action, explosions and humor. But the movie stands out from most other superhero movies because of its powerful emotional core. This time, Rocket is at the center of the story. We learn the story of his origins and how he became who he is. This character has become the superglue that holds the plot together, preventing it from crumbling into small pieces.
Perhaps the third Guardians of the Galaxy is not the most perfect movie. Some of the jokes are too simple, and at the same time, the director sometimes inflates the drama. But still, the result is a pretty solid product. Now it’s hard to say whether we will see the fourth part. But even if we don’t, the third Guardians can be considered a pretty good ending to the story of the characters that the audience loved so much.
No One Will Save You
What is the movie about?
Brynn lives in a forest house in quite a distance from a small town. Because of an event in her past, she is doomed to loneliness — the locals condemn her and actively ignore her. One night, the girl wakes up to strange noises and notices that an extraterrestrial being with obviously bad intentions has entered her house. With no one to help her, Brynn has to face the alien invasion alone.
What makes it interesting
From the description, it may seem that No One Will Save You is another horror movie about a cursed house, but instead of a maniac or evil spirits, the main character is terrorized by little green men. But it’s not that simple.
On the one hand, the film features aliens carefully copied from old B-movies (big gray eyes and classic flying saucers included) who, of course, want to take over the world, which provides the audience with a lot of tense and sometimes really frightening scenes. On the other hand, underneath this deliberately formulaic visual style lies the dramatic story of a person who has made a terrible mistake, the consequences of which she can never atone for.
All this is superimposed on the main feature of the movie: there is practically no dialog. The protagonist utters no more than a dozen words throughout the movie. Her story is not told. It is shown. The combination of all these factors makes No One Will Save You well worth the attention of all fans of sci-fi horror.
A Million Miles Away
What is the movie about?
The story of Jose Hernandez, a migrant farm worker who, with the help of his family, realized his dream of going into space.
What makes it interesting
A Million Miles Away is based on the true story of Jose Hernandez, one of four children in a family of migrants from Mexico who did not speak English until he was 12. And yet, he still managed to fulfill his dream, get a job at NASA and fly into space.
This incredible story alone makes the film worth watching, because no matter what anyone says about the death of the American dream, some people still manage to make it a reality. In addition to the general life-affirming message, the film’s solid advantage is the acting of Michael Peña, who managed to show how Hernandez found strength to overcome all the numerous obstacles on his way and touch the stars.
Yes, A Million Miles Away is not a movie that will be nominated for various high-profile awards. But this does not negate the fact that this is a really interesting story that may well become a source of inspiration for someone.
The Creator
What is the movie about?
A former Special Forces officer is recruited by the US Army to track down and kill The Creator who has developed a mysterious weapon that can end the war between artificial intelligence and humans by destroying all of humanity. But after the protagonist finds out what this weapon actually is, he will have to reconsider his choice of which side to take.
What makes it interesting
The Creator by Garrett Edwards is a kind of love letter to the sci-fi films of the 1980s. It features a war between robots and machines, an ominous space station that the heroes must destroy, and numerous allusions to the Vietnam War.
The main trump card of the film is its visuals. The movie is literally pleasing to the eye with its gorgeous designs and beautifully shot scenes. At the same time, it cost a rather modest 80 million dollars, by the standards of modern Hollywood. And yet, Edwards’ film looks much better than most blockbusters with much larger budgets.
Of course, The Creator has its weaknesses. Unfortunately, the filmmakers didn’t put as much effort into the script as they did into the visuals, which is why it contains a lot of genre clichés. But despite this, The Creator definitely deserves attention as one of the most spectacular and technically advanced films of 2023.
Asteroid City
What is the movie about?
The year is 1955, a small fictional town located near a crater left after an asteroid crashed thousands of years ago. Every year, a meeting of young astronomers is held here, attended by students, their families, teachers, and the military. Another such meeting is abruptly interrupted by events that could change the world.
Why it is interesting
If The Creator is an homage to the sci-fi films of the 1980s, Asteroid City is a tribute to the 1950s, retrofuturism, and numerous urban legends about UFO sightings and alien contacts.
The movie was directed by Wes Anderson, a director who can be recognized literally by one frame. And in Asteroid City, he did not change himself. In the film, you can find all the main components of his signature style — from the composition of the frame and the constant co-stars like Jason Schwartzman and Adrien Brody, to the use of puppet animation in the scene of the alien’s appearance.
Of course, this is not to say that the movie opens up any new horizons in Anderson’s filmography. But watching it is quite comparable to using your favorite blanket, which gives you a pleasant feeling of warmth. If you like Wes Anderson’s work, you will most likely like Asteroid City.
