Spaceman (2024) | REVIEW

Directed by Johan Renck — Screenplay by Colby Day.

Based on Jaroslav Kalfař’s 2017 science-fiction novel Spaceman of Bohemia, Johan Renck’s Spaceman follows Jakub Procházka (played by Adam Sandler), a Czech astronaut, while on a solo mission in space to investigate a mysterious particle cloud nearby Jupiter. His mission is in direct competition with that of a South Korean ship, which is also part of a relatively untraditional space race compared to the real world. By his lonesome on the spaceship, Jakub is feeling the effects of solitude and long-term space travel, and he desires contact with his pregnant partner Lenka (played by Carey Mulligan). Lenka has indeed prepared a video for Jakub to see, but, fearing that Jakub’s depression may worsen if it reaches him, the commander of the Czech space agency, Tuma (played by Isabella Rossellini), prevents it from reaching the most lonely human in space. That is because, in the video, Lenka expresses very clearly that she wants to leave Jakub for good. While Jakub gets lonelier and lonelier as he gradually gets closer to the mysterious particle cloud, he is approached by a massive spider-like alien creature, which has made its way into the spacecraft somehow. The alien arachnid, which is often referred to as Hanuš (voiced by Paul Dano), insists that it doesn’t want to harm this ‘skinny human.’ Rather, it wants to investigate our species and help Jakub with his troubled headspace. 

Frankly, Spaceman, a relatively hotly anticipated film for sci-fi enthusiasts, has all the right ingredients that should make up a strong feature for Netflix to promote heavily. Although director Johan Renck’s first feature Downloading Nancy from 2008 was met with mostly negative reviews, the Swede has since gone on to prove himself as a director with commendable work for shows such as Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, Bates Motel, Halt and Catch Fire, and Chernobyl, for which he is most widely known. It also boasts a formidable cast which includes Isabella Rossellini, The Big Bang Theory’s Kunal Nayyar, Carey Mulligan, Paul Dano, and Adam Sandler, with the latter intending to turn in one of his oft-praised dramatic turns. Oh, and it also features music composed by Max Richter. In spite of all of this, it doesn’t feel like the film has really broken through the pop culture gates and made much of an impact online or through word-of-mouth. Perhaps some of this is because Netflix for some unknown reason decided to release the film in Dune: Part Two’s release weekend. The film ought to have been given a release date that gave it more of a chance to reach viewers, even though Renck’s second feature film is not, ultimately, as good as it should’ve been. 

Johan Renck’s second feature film doesn’t just boast some strong ingredients, it also features some things that really work. For one, Adam Sandler is fairly decent in the film. It’s not among his best dramatic turns, but it is a more than passable turn based on what he was given to work with. Some visually intriguing choices work, such as a fish-eye perspective during certain visions and/or flashbacks. There are some interesting things about the Czech space agency that hint at a story much larger than the husband-and-wife lack of connection focus. And, frankly, the film gets a lot out of its most unique element — i.e. the huge spider that is sure to make all arachnophobic viewers cover their eyes in horror once or twice. It is initially extremely alarming, startling, and creepy, and once its true intentions are revealed Paul Dano’s soft and soothing voice performance does a lot to sell what the film is going for with its inclusion. It is the scariest, most interesting, and most fun element of the film. 

However, frankly, if it weren’t a spider, then it wouldn’t have worked as well. This means that if it had been almost literally any other animal, there wouldn’t have been as much of a distraction from how dull and unoriginal most of the stuff here is — and it thus wouldn’t have been able to hold your attention. Perhaps that is a little bit of a silly criticism, but the point is that the film hiding behind the curious premise of ‘Adam Sandler stuck on a spaceship with a massive spider’ is not very interesting. All too often it resembles many other better executed films. It does many of the same things that you may have seen in Ad Astra or Interstellar, though not as well. And, honestly, Spaceman ultimately feels like Michel Gondry’s Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and Denis Villeneuve’s Enemy had a baby that was raised by James Gray’s Ad Astra. 

Carey Mulligan has frustratingly little to work with, and the relationship problems of her and Sandler’s characters — and, really, their characterizations — feel insufficiently specific. Also, those Czech-specific hints about politics never materialize into something with serious heft and depth to it (in part because specifics are underexplained), which is a shame because that would be a way to really set this film apart from all of the very obvious inspirations. So, yeah, ultimately Johan Renck’s Spaceman is less than the sum of its parts. While the ingredients may work on paper — or in theory — in execution, it is a fairly dull and generic affair, with the arachnid being one of the only distinctive elements about it. It is a film that I wanted to like a lot more than I did, but which was ultimately fairly inadequate and, despite its gimmick, will probably be a little bit too forgettable.

5.5 out of 10

– Review Written by Jeffrey Rex Bertelsen.