Rating: 1.5/5
Synopsis:
In the age of franchise continuation, “Ash” attempts to create a different kind of story. A crew member wakes up to find the rest of her team brutally murdered. With no recollection of the events, she decides to investigate. An unknown crew member appears during her investigation, implying her memory is failing her. What follows is a terrifying series of events, testing reality and the will to survive.
Positives:
If there is one compliment I can apply to “Ash”, it would be the ability to tell a story in a unique way. Director Flying Lotus has a background in the music industry, so his attention to detail on setting a mood is evident. The film plays with lighting and perception well, challenging the viewer’s ability to discern what is going on. This built up the mystery well, making us wonder how the events would unfold. The flickering lights, strong color palette, and deceptive editing helped set the claustrophobic mood for the viewer. The editing also helps us understand the paranoia the main character is feeling, going back and forth between flashbacks that are so intense that they are nightmare inducing.
Negatives:
Outside of some creative imprints from director Flying Lotus, I didn’t enjoy much about the film. The story takes a long time to get going, where the first fifteen minutes of the film are essentially dialogue free. This combined with a nauseating (and constant) flickering of lights doused in intense color set the stage for an experience filled with overstimulation. The rest of the film proceeds to be a loud, confusing, and patchy story that borrows material from other (better) sci-fi films. The story has no flow to it, meandering and playing with perspective so much that it forgets to build to anything worthwhile. I was hoping it would kick into high gear once certain elements of the story were established. Unfortunately, the story gets even sillier by the end…abandoning what could have been a fresh premise. After we find out what is going on, everything felt too familiar to warrant this effort. The new elements regarding paranoia and infection were so silly by the end.
The cast is also underwhelming. Aaron Paul is the biggest name involved, but even he can’t save the film. Both he and Eiza González give lackluster performances, failing to live up to the greats established in other sci-fi franchises. The rest of the cast is forgettable too, simply being background noise to move the story forward. None of the implied relationships between the characters felt strong. I just couldn’t get invested into any of them. Flying Lotus has some work to do in regards to creating a story that flows well, which starts with creating strong characters. He needs to recognize that good characters propel a story forward because tricky special effects only go so far. A poor story, bland characters, and overstimulating special effects make for a miserable experience.
Conclusion:
While “Ash” makes some attempts to do something different, it falls flat on nearly every level. Outside of some unique creative input, the performances, special effects, and storyline all disappoint. After I left the showing, I wanted to go back and watch something like “Alien” as a palate cleanser. I can’t recommend the film, so don’t waste any time or money on this one. Go watch one of the classics instead.
