Review of Prospect

By Dave B.

Prospect (2018, currently on Hulu) is a science-fiction film about a drug-addicted father and his extremely resourceful daughter, who travel to an inhospitable planet at the end of the universe for one last prospecting score. Ill-fated from the beginning, the journey turns into a struggle for survival against other hostile miners and a race against time as the last ship to human-occupied space prepares to depart.

Hmmm…Prospect is one of those movies that’s difficult for me to feel a lot of passion for (or against) because it’s strengths and weaknesses are evenly balanced. On the one side, Prospect is an interesting character study with solid character development. It has very good cinematography, is well-directed, and it’s runtime, at 100 minutes, is long enough to tell its story, but short enough so that it doesn’t get boring or suffer from pacing issues. Considering its modest budget, Prospect is quite impressive. 

​However, it would be generous to call Prospect’s plot pedestrian. There are a few surprises in the film, but only a few. And despite some decent-to-good dialogue, the only character that is even remotely interesting is the daughter (played adeptly by Sophie Thatcher). Prospect is an excellent example of a mediocre movie that is executed to near-perfection. 

​So where does that leave we humble viewers? In limbo, to be honest. I can see how this movie would inspire a lot of passion in people because of how well-crafted it is, overall. Personally, I enjoyed Prospect and I do recommend it, but with reservations. Namely, fans of both science-fiction and indie movies are likely to appreciate what the creators of Prospect accomplished on a relative shoestring budget, despite its rather shallow plot. But wider audiences may be turned off by a movie that lacks big special effects, surprising twists, and extensive melodrama. If you’re interested in seeing a well-made science-fiction movie, that is much more respectable than it is great, Prospect is short enough (and juuuust about good enough) to be worth your time. 

Rating: 6.5/10