SXSW FILM REVIEW: ‘First Light’ An Emotional Sci-fi Stunner

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One of the bigger problems with modern science fiction has been the tendency to move towards the epic. Bigger is better. Huge is the end game. The stories must be sweeping to have resonance. There are some exceptions to this rule, of course—Ex Machina comes immediately to mind, or Primer—but for the most part, this rings true.

There’s nothing wrong with huge, fast paced movies, of course. But science fiction is a genre that often works best when telling smaller, more intimate stories. Stories that are, first and foremost, stories about people, real people, and their humanity. Giant spaceships and massive explosions are all well and good, and I haven’t exactly made a secret about my love for them. Absent heart, however, and what you’re left with is all flash. Flash wears off. Truly great sci-fi, on the other hand, can make a lasting impact.

First Light is a stunning work of science fiction. Smart, stylish, and enthralling, it’s a film that yet again proves that the genre needn’t eschew intimacy to tell a story as grand as humanity itself. It’s an imaginative work of wonder that recalls the best of science fiction that’s come before it, and one of the better works of sci-fi I’ve seen in years.

The film follows teenager Sean (Theodore Pellerin) who is forced to grow well beyond his years by his circumstances. His parents are absent, his grandmother is invalid, and his younger brother is out of control at school. His home life makes it hard for him to connect with his former friend (and current crush) Alex (Stefanie Scott) to his clear dismay. However, after having an encounter with a UFO, Alex finds herself given supernatural abilities, and with no one else to turn to, she and Sean must discover the secret of her new gifts and stay a step ahead of the government agents looking to capture her.

Think of it as a combination of Close Encounters and E.T. with maybe a little bit of X-Men thrown in for good measure. Alex’s powers are certainly not dissimilar for what you might see in any number of comics you might flip through, but what makes First Light so special is writer/director Jason Stone’s (The Calling) keen eye for emotionalism.

There are a lot of grand ideas about faith and humanity laced within the text and subtext of First Light, and Stone balances these themes perfectly with a story that’s relatively small scale. At it’s core, this is a film about finding and holding on to hope, even in hopeless situations. This all leads to one of the most mesmerizing emotional climaxes delivered by a science fiction movie in quite some time, and the sheer emotional magnitude was almost unbearable in the best possible way.

Pellerin and Scott both give nuanced performances that respect their characters beautifully. Scott is especially captivating as Alex, though they each bring a remarkable authenticity to their roles. These are characters suffering through the pains of adolescence on top of the terror of their situation and, like the film itself, they manage to walk the delicate needs of their roles superbly.

While there are some minor issues with dialogue and pacing (on top of a thematically relevant but questionably necessary epilogue), any of the film’s flaws are vastly outshined by everything else that’s so remarkable about it. Stone has managed to take a somewhat-familiar story and infuse it with life, heart, and emotion that makes it relevant once again.

Read our interview with writer/director Jason Stone here

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