2036 Origin Unknown is a 2018 sci-fi drama about the first manned mission to Mars that uncovers a mysterious object under the surface that could change the future of our planet as we know it.
There isn’t a planet in our Solar System, save that of our own, that gets more attention than Mars, especially in the movies, where what seems like countless films have taken us to the surface of this mysterious red world. From classic 50s low-budget thrillers to more modern realistic depictions, the hope that we might actually make our way there drives many an inspired screenwriter. Now comes writer/director Hasraf Dulull‘s latest outing 2036 Origin Unknown, an independent low budget effort that far exceeds its expectations and should be a fun pick for fans of sci-fi mind benders.
In the year 2030, the first manned space mission to Mars gets underway with a small crew making the 80-day journey to the surface only to end in silence as the ship loses contact with Earth and is not heard from again. Six years later Mackenzie “Mack” Wilson (Katee Sackhoff) is a scientist and mission controller at a secret facility run by the United Space Planetary Corporation (USPC) in orbit over the planet. She is also the daughter of the one of the lost astronauts, ordered to investigate a mysterious cube that has formed on the surface. With the company committed to trusting A.I. rather than possible human error, she is accompanied by her ship’s computer, ARTi (voiced by Steven Cree), though is watched by her Earthbound supervisor Lena (Julie Cox) who happens to be her sister.
Much of 2036 Origin Unknown is dialogue between Mack and ARTi, she stuck in a command booth packed with hi-tech gadgetry trying to keep control over an A.I. system given greater reach over the operation than she signed up for, something kept from her until the first launch to the surface is triggered without her input. Left to a back-up role, she is thrust more into the mystery of it after ARTi – controlling an r.v. on the surface – comes upon a strange object that puts ARTi to the test. But not all is at it seems and the usefulness of humans is soon put to task.
The thing about movies like this is how well the director can contain their ambition with the budget given, something many overshoot, typically leaving their projects trying to build worlds far too big to make convincing, ending up with cheap CGI that often pull viewers right out of the experience. Not so with 2036 Origin Unknown, as Dulull, who has probably five times as many visual effects credits to his name than director titles, absolutely sells his vision. The glorious images from space and the surface of Mars are supremely well done, and even the small control room where Mack spends much of her time is very convincing.
All that in mind, this is not an action movie, and any hopes it might be a kind of The Martian clone should be avoided, as this is much more a thinker than an action film, no matter how smart that movie was. More akin to 2001: A Space Odyssey, it’s very much a one-woman show, with Sackhoff just about on screen for the duration, chatting it up with a large sterile white globe with a jet black screen who seems to have some very aggressive programming. While the whole thing might not have the impact it entirely aims for, it is nonetheless a highly engaging little thriller with a terrific performance from Sackhoff. Well-directed and targeted directly at fans of science fiction who care more about science than the fiction, this is a solid indie gem worth giving a shot.