A for Andromeda

Release Year : 2006

AKA : N/A

Directed By : John Strickland

Written By : John Elliot, Richard Fell

Starring : Tom Hardy, Colin Stinton, Jane Asher, Kelly Reilly, Charlie Cox

Related Links : IMDB

 

Okay, I'll confess it. I am an insomniac. Sleep to me is like sex to a eunuch in a brothel - you see a lot of other people doing it, but not a lot comes your way. Usually my lack of sleep is a bad thing but not so this time. I caught this 2006 BBC remake of the 1960s TV series in a slot on BBC 4 at around 2:30 in the morning and was definitely glad that I did.

It's an interesting, although a tad cliched, tale about a group of scientists who stumble upon an alien transmission. They decipher the transmission and discover that it is instructions for building an alien computer. What else are these scientist types going to do other than dismiss any possible consequences and build it?

That's when their problems really begin, and where a review is going to get really difficult without spoiling some of the fun.

After some hmm-ing and hah-ing the computer guides the scientists in how to create life in a test tube. Not just any life, a humanoid robot intended to be an extension of the computer and its mysterious purpose.

Kelly Reilly, pictured, does a very convincing job of portraying Andromeda, the humanoid which the scientists create. She looks nice with those striking blue eyes, and delivers a convincing performance as the intellectual colossus who still has to be taught basics like speaking and eating. Her performance as the film builds to its unfortunately predictable climax is pretty moving. What is quintessentially an alien being displays more humanity than many of human military/government types who are just keen to exploit the weapons potential in a computer advanced decades beyond our own technology.

There is a nice little sci-fi tale in here, a love story with a difference, and just about enough going on to sustain interest and allow us to forgive the predictable plot developments. Effects aren't the greatest but they suffice. It's amazing what you can do with a few tubes, a chest freezer, and a heap of dry ice.

It's not going to overly tax the brain, any scientist types among you are going to pick holes in numerous elements of the pseudo-science used, and it is fairly formulaic in a lot of ways. Despite all that though it does have a certain charm and remains an enjoyable watch. We can't really fault the BBC, of whom I am often a stern critic, for trying hard to bring us some fun sci-fi instead of the usual junk that dominates the TV schedules.