The following is a quick review of Spectral – directed by Nic Mathieu.
In Netflix’s Spectral, Clyne (played by James Badge Dale) teams up with a special ops team to discover what supernatural force has been running amok in Europe. They soon encounter ghost-like beings that are able to kill just by passing through you. Now, Clyne and the special ops team must try to survive attacks from these beings that seem invincible.
I was really curious about what kind of movie Spectral was. You see, once upon a time, Spectral – a Legendary Pictures production – was supposed to be released theatrically by Universal Pictures, but, at one point in time, it was suddenly removed from the release schedule, and now it has been acquired by Netflix.
I had hoped that this would be the film to make me really believe in Netflix films again, but I can’t say that after having seen it. I also don’t think it is as unique as you may think it looks in the trailer. This isn’t a mixture of Call of Duty and Ghostbusters.
It’s just a bad version of Aliens that doesn’t take place in space and that doesn’t include any Xenomorphs. And I really mean that. It’s almost scary how much some of the central scenes in the first forty minutes, or so, reminded me of Aliens. And when you notice that the first time, then you can’t ‘unsee it,’ so to speak.
This isn’t the movie I wanted it to be. Spectral is lifeless, unimpressive, and forgettable. Even the well-known cast can’t save it. Legendary missed the mark here, and Netflix acquired a very disappointing and unremarkable film. Universal Pictures probably did the right thing here. I don’t think this film would’ve been a success if it were released in theaters.
5 out of 10
– Jeffrey Rex
I'm Jeffrey Rex 