An international space crew discovers a large single celled organism, the first proof of life beyond Earth, but when it becomes clear it is of a sinister nature the crew must decide whether to return home – risking all of human existence by contamination – or become martyrs.

Life sees frontrunner Jake Gyllenhaal in his first venture into space as an actor. Most A-listers end up there at some point, and every now and then produce a Film that is worthy of remembrance but this seems to be a cross between a few space movies we’ve seen before. Not to mention I can think of at least two films with the exact same title. The cast also features Ryan Reynolds, Rebecca Ferguson, Olga Dihovichnaya, Hiroyuki Sanada and Ariyon Bakare. With Gyllenhaal consistently appearing in good films and Reynolds having never appeared in one, this makes for an unexpected pairing and leaves me puzzled in predicting the quality of the picture. Director Daniel Espinosa has produced some very unremarkable action thrillers in the past but his most recent film – Child 44 (2015) fronted by Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace – held a lot more substance and artistic merit, which means that Life might fall somewhere in between. At least it should serve perfectly as a spot of escapism accompanied by some popcorn.

Life is due for theatrical release in May. You can watch the trailer below.

Olga Dihovichnaya in Life

Jake Gyllenhaal in Life