Although this is more fiction than fact it was certainly as good as the many similar Hollywood propaganda pieces (though nowhere near as good as Apollo 13, which was a better film, despite being more fact-based, with all the narrative limitations that naturally entails).
It is definitely a better space-based film than Gravity, in my view, although that isn't really too hard.
Entertainment is what this film is about, and it delivers that well, keeping the tension throughout, with a satisfyingly well-considered set of problems being created for the piece's heroes to overcome. Which they do, with what seems to me to be some quite convincingly typical Russian use of human power, rather than technological might to win the day. (rags and a large hammer to the rescue!)
From a cinematographic point of view the film is extremely good. The zero gravity scenes are all excellent, from the wonderful vistas of earth to the watery cabin scene. The cast is all solid, if not exceptional.
One area which took me out of the zone a little was the music, however since I am not a fan of overly bombastic music, Russian or otherwise, the fact that I noticed this was potentially more of a cultural thing. We're all very used to a US soundtrack style these days after all, and this was definitely different, even if subtly so.
I was disappointed to learn after watching this how little of what was shown actually took place. Tension is easy to build when you don't have to stick to real-world events. But at least they kept the whole thing pretty believable unlike some others (I'm looking at you here Gravity)
Overall I would recommend this film to any space addict.
It is definitely a better space-based film than Gravity, in my view, although that isn't really too hard.
Entertainment is what this film is about, and it delivers that well, keeping the tension throughout, with a satisfyingly well-considered set of problems being created for the piece's heroes to overcome. Which they do, with what seems to me to be some quite convincingly typical Russian use of human power, rather than technological might to win the day. (rags and a large hammer to the rescue!)
From a cinematographic point of view the film is extremely good. The zero gravity scenes are all excellent, from the wonderful vistas of earth to the watery cabin scene. The cast is all solid, if not exceptional.
One area which took me out of the zone a little was the music, however since I am not a fan of overly bombastic music, Russian or otherwise, the fact that I noticed this was potentially more of a cultural thing. We're all very used to a US soundtrack style these days after all, and this was definitely different, even if subtly so.
I was disappointed to learn after watching this how little of what was shown actually took place. Tension is easy to build when you don't have to stick to real-world events. But at least they kept the whole thing pretty believable unlike some others (I'm looking at you here Gravity)
Overall I would recommend this film to any space addict.