This vintage TV movie offers profound insights into the human condition and the implications for our exploration of outer space. NOT! What it does have is a darker buddy buddy relationship than we have come to expect from Spelling and Goldberg and good production values, probably because it was a two hander with more room to spend elsewhere.
The problem is the audience guesses quickly who-dunnit, thus stretching credulity to the limit when the scientists are less quick off the mark. Okay, so fans of the genre automatically look for the sinister, whereas the characters in the 'real' world are reacting as events unfold. Nevertheless, when Dr Enari is forced to apologise to Dr Jones, the penny should have dropped there and then. Altitude is blamed to a certain extent, but professionals in the same field will probably be niggled at the near basket cases presented here before any real investigating gets under way. Funnily enough, although the who was obvious, the why never really entered my head. The out of left field answer will either amuse or frustrate. Culp gives a strong performance as a man pushed to mental and physical limits and I actually winced when his head took a dunk into some frozen water.
Although daft, this movie haunted me for several hours after I saw it so I give it a qualified thumbs up.
The problem is the audience guesses quickly who-dunnit, thus stretching credulity to the limit when the scientists are less quick off the mark. Okay, so fans of the genre automatically look for the sinister, whereas the characters in the 'real' world are reacting as events unfold. Nevertheless, when Dr Enari is forced to apologise to Dr Jones, the penny should have dropped there and then. Altitude is blamed to a certain extent, but professionals in the same field will probably be niggled at the near basket cases presented here before any real investigating gets under way. Funnily enough, although the who was obvious, the why never really entered my head. The out of left field answer will either amuse or frustrate. Culp gives a strong performance as a man pushed to mental and physical limits and I actually winced when his head took a dunk into some frozen water.
Although daft, this movie haunted me for several hours after I saw it so I give it a qualified thumbs up.