Author Spotlight
Avni Bansal
While I’d like to say I’m capable of remaining somewhat calm while watching horror movies — I only screamed once during the psychological horror film, “Hereditary” — the opening scene of the thriller/science fiction movie, “Ash,” had me absolutely terrified.
The flashing lights and pounding, rhythmic beats resonated through the theater, making me plug my ears and look away from the screen. Yet, the adrenaline made the storyline even more immersive. I felt like I was the one in danger.
The director, Flying Lotus, and screenplay writer, Jonni Remmler, crafted a storyline that was supported by impressive acting, a fitting setting and a suspenseful plot.
The movie follows Riya, played by Eiza González, an astronaut who wakes up in a space station to find her crew brutally murdered on a strange planet called “Ash.” She has zero recollection of what happened, and when another astronaut named Brion, played by Aaron Paul, arrives, she must determine if he’s actually who he claims to be and investigate what happened to her crew. Riya’s journey of piecing together her fragmented memories adds an alluring sense of dread as she tries to understand what’s happening to her body and mind.
As Riya unravels the mystery of what happened on the planet, her ambiguous, blood-filled flashbacks make her an unreliable yet compelling narrator. Watching the story play out through her eyes made me care about Riya’s struggle as I tried to decipher the story myself.
The use of cryptic storytelling, deliberate camera angles, dim lighting and piercing sound effects in each scene transported me to a hallucinogenic state — reminding me of the thrilling confusion I experienced while trying to decipher what was actually happening in the horror film, “Smile 2.”
The perplexing storyline was incredibly elevated with González’s remarkable acting. She captured every emotion perfectly — whether it was anger, fear or confusion — by displaying intense expressions and moving fiercely during crucial fight scenes. Paired with the disturbing effect of muffled voices and breathing sounds, González succeeded in portraying a gritty survivor throughout the movie.
On the other hand, Paul’s role as Brion wasn’t the dynamic performance I had anticipated. While Brion’s punk-like appearance, with tattoos and disheveled hair, reinforced his role as a toughened astronaut, Paul failed to make me care about his character. Brion lacked depth; he was intelligent but ultimately uninteresting — perhaps due to the lack of character development by the director. Brion played a key role as Riya’s perceived ally, but I couldn’t emotionally connect with him.
I expected much more from my all-time favorite character in the TV show, “Breaking Bad,” but when Paul was angry about Riya wanting to investigate the deaths on the planet, his attempt to yell at Riya in frustration fell flat and made me cringe.
Despite Paul’s underwhelming acting, the movie remained a visually spectacular experience. The planet was barren with extreme sandstorms, tall, jagged rocks and a stunning purple-blue sky — daunting but breathtaking. And the dim, red lighting in the eerie space station made me feel like someone was going to jump out at any moment, adding tension to the already complex story.
I’m still in awe of how the movie held my attention even when I had no idea what was happening. New details about the crew’s deaths revealed through Riya’s rediscovered memories and constant plot twists kept me from looking away, even when there was so much blood and gore that I wanted to exit the theater.
Although I did have trouble stomaching the puddles of blood and gory manslaughter, I couldn’t stop thinking about “Ash” for days. This thought-provoking movie is a carefully constructed visual and intellectual treat with memorable details and an astonishing finale.
They tried to combine The Thing and Alien. They failed. Wandering plot, actors didn’t try, special effects were flashing lights. Wait a couple months and you can watch it free on Hallmark or Lifetime.
Hallmark and Lifetime doesn’t show movies like Ash.
Be for real!!!
Ash stupid stupid
This is the type of entertainment diet I refuse as just bad for my brain. Just sensual manipulation .
Boring
The bottom of my popcorn barrel was more interesting than this movie.
I have seen a million movies and this was one of the worst movies I have ever seen. The “reviewer” was definitely paid well
Guess some of u twits either didn’t get enough hugs from Mommy or having that time of the month issues. Ash is a superior scifi/horror film. The review was lacking in context and rather sophomoric. The reason that Aaron Paul’s character seemed off was simply because it wasn’t him but the creature inside of Riya’s head replicating what human interaction would be. Ash imhois the first synthwave horror movie. It borrows from so many great and not so great films in the genre. From Life, Pandorum, and Beyond The Black Rainbow it’s a feast for the eyes and ears. It borrowed most from the 2 greatest movies in the scifi/horror Alien and The Thing. The creature effects were so reminiscent of The Thing and the crew interactions and the claustrophobic tension was all Alien. Plus, it is one of the few recent movies that almost requires a 2nd viewing to understand it better. A smart and concise addition to the scifi/horror canon.
Exactly. He wasn’t really there to begin with so how could he act so human. I thought the film was awesome to look at and overall not a bad movie. I have seen worse.
Thanks for the spoiler, a$$h0l3
I had no problem with the movie.
As you said, I will have to view it a second time, not just to fully understand it but because I missed the first 15 minutes.
Sorry, I have to disagree. As a Science Fiction aficionado, I found the movie predictable and boring. Many beginning, or lazy, SF screen writers rely on one of the dozens of common SF tropes that have been around since the 1950’s: Jonni Remmler used them all! There was nothing remotely original in this movie. Without exageration, I can honestly say I knew every character’s “secret” or twist by their second time they were on screen.
You’re free to have your own opinion but why apologize for it?
Words talking say make dumb hears
Awful “film”
Also loved it, Flying Lotus score kept us on edge, felt immersive like a techno club
Horrible movie ever
Terrible Sentence make
Did you actually mean to say “the most horrible movie ever?”
“Horrible movie ever” as you stated, is “horrible grammar!”