Space Sweepers is a South Korean Sci-fi space action film directed by Jo Sung-hee. It stars Song Joong-ki, Kim Tae-ri, Jin Seon-kyu, Yoo Hae-jin, and Park Ye-rin in main roles and was released on 5th February 2021 on Netflix.
The film is set in 2092, the Earth is unhabitable as the forests have disappeared and the soils have turned acidic. Seeing this deterioration in the Earth's nature, UTS corporation has built a new orbiting home for humanity but only a few chosen can ascend to that new world. Now coming to the main story, it is about the four crews of The Victory, a dump collectorship, Tae-ho (Song Joong-ki), Captain Jang (Kim Tae-ri), Tiger Park (Jin Seon-kyu), and a robot Bubs (Yoo Hae-jin), who when doing their usual jobs founds a lost girl Dorothy (Park Ye-rin) in one of the cargo containers. There's also news coming about a girl, obviously the same girl Dorothy, who is a robot and is a nuclear weapon and a bomb that can destroy millions of lives. Then there's James Sullivan (Richard Armitage), the founder of UTS corporation, looking for Dorothy for his own plan. So who's really Dorothy? What will be the space sweepers' next plan? Why Sullivan needs Dorothy so badly?
Yoon Seung-min, Yoo-kang Seo-ae, and Jo Sung-hee have written the film. The writers have mainly showcased the lives of the poor and underprivileged through this story and show neither of the chosen people's lives nor the glance at the settlements outside the Earth. The four-space sweepers collect scraps, fight with their rivals and they strongly need money for themselves and their ship. And seeing Dorothy as a chance to extort money and getting out of their poverty, they make a plan.
The film's tone is very light and cheerful and the presence of adorable Dorothy, who gets close to Tiger and Bubs, and with the drawing of four's portrait, Dorothy will win your heart with her sweet presence. The dynamics between the four sweepers is also one of the strengths of the film. The film offers nothing new or fresh on space concept, with wars and destroying Earth, everything we have seen more than a dozen times. Even the badman, James Sullivan's intention is very bad but nothing novel in that too.
Tae-ho is the character that is investing as he's trying to find his little girl and so he bonds with Dorothy, allowing her to sit and draw in his cabin and to stick those drawings on the refrigerator. His angle brings authenticity to the film. Whereas Bubs used to be in the military and has killed many people. But Tiger and Captain Jang are just the normal people here. They are out on the mission to save the Earth as Sullivan is trying to kill Dorothy. She is special, with nanobots inside and now has the power to bring life to the dead.
Because of that nanobots, she is now like a hydrogen bomb. Sullivan wants to take Dorothy to the Factory's anti-gravity engine where she will be blown into subatomic particles. Then the Factory will crash into the Earth causing fractures on the crusts which will bring tsunamis and nuclear fallout. Even you'll know what will happen in the last, you will stick to it. And that's the magic. It has all the ingredients, seen many times, and Jo Sung-hee makes the best out of it. It is engaging, and sweet and the action sequences are a treat to the eye. The space battle's grandeur will remind you of the Star Wars minus those video games like noise.
Song Joong-ki as Tae-ho has given a subtle and restrained performance and impresses the most among all. Be it in the scenes, where a sees his daughter's notebook or while having sweet talks with Dorothy, he's got the amazing character to show his range of expressions. Kim Tae-ri as Captain Jang appears rough all the time but she's done a good job with that. Jin Seon-kyu as Tiger Park also leaves his mark. His fondness for Dorothy is sweet and his scene where he washes Dorothy's hair will make you laugh. Yoo Hae-jin as Robot Bubs is effective and Richard Armitage as James Sullivan also did well. Park Ye-rin as Dorothy is just perfect in every scene. She brings a lightness and adorability in the film and always a smile to your face.
The cinematography by Byun Bong-sun is breathtaking. The camera work with solid visual effects works wonders for the film. The scenes are visually stunning, say the orange tint Earth-like that in Blade Runner 2049, or the space battles, the ships, everything is just of a superlative level. The production design is amazing, nothing more to say, everything looks fancy. The editing could have been crisper.
Space Sweepers by Jo Sung-hee is an engaging space saga despite its overused plots and themes. The makers have used their potential to the fullest and are evident in every frame of it. It's cute, fun, charming, and enthralling. The whole cast did an excellent job and maybe you have watched more than hundreds of space films but this deserves your time too. Other than its uneven pace and cliched storyline, it's worth the 137 minutes.
Rating:- 3.5/5
Now streaming on Netflix.
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