Constellation Review Episode 1-3: Evocative and Compelling Breath Of Fresh Air In The Science Fiction
Cast: Noomi Rapace, Jonathan Banks, James D’Arcy
Created By: Peter Harness
Streaming Platform: Apple TV+
Filmyhype.com Ratings: 4/5 (four stars)
Constellation, a new TV series written by Peter Harness (Inspector Wallander, The War of the Worlds) starring Noomi Rapace (Millennium – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) will be released on February 21st on Apple TV, with the first three out of 8 episodes, You Will Not Be Alone, Lamb, Seven Sisters) and Jonathan Banks (Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul). Constellation is a series that, to remain within the confines of Apple TV+, mixes the science fiction of For All Mankind with the thriller tones and events of Servant and The Changeling, giving shape to a mix that is as disturbing as it is successful. So here is our review of Constellation, which begins with a summary of the plot, obviously without spoilers.
Space exploration has always exercised an undeniable fascination with man, with its promises of revolutionary scientific discoveries, if not the very meaning of life. A phantom last frontier which, from the imaginary voyages of the USS Enterprise, has become increasingly concrete after the historic moon landing in 1969, but no less full of mystery. We are still at the beginning of our journey among the stars, searching for answers that will finally allow us to decode our reality. A contact with incomprehensible forces that upsets our existence, which all fiction has fantasized about over the years, imagining both optimistic scenarios (the encounter with the monolith in the classic 2001: A Space Odyssey, which triggers the next evolutionary phase of man) which is nightmarish (the infernal dimension of Point of No Return). Shocking experiences that could radically change ourselves and our perceptions, even if we were to return home to Earth, safe and sound.
Constellation Review Episode 1-3: The Story Plot
The plot of Constellation is based precisely on this assumption: the miraculous return to our planet of Swedish astronaut Jo Ericsson (Noomi Rapace) after a serious accident on the international space station (an unidentified object hit the structure, compromising the systems life support). After a desperate fight for survival in the solitude of space, the woman finally manages to reunite with her husband Magnus (James D’Arcy) and her daughter Alice (played by the twins Rosie and Davina Coleman), but something seems to be wrong. Several elements of the reality around her would seem different from how she remembered them, both in small details and in more macroscopic discrepancies. Is it due to the trauma suffered in space? And what if it was connected to the mysterious experiment carried out by Nobel Prize winner Henry Caldera (Jonathan Banks)?
Are you familiar with the term “Mandela effect”? This is how the phenomenon linked to false memories is defined. It has happened to everyone, at least once in their life, to be 100% sure of something – a historical fact, a curiosity linked to pop culture – which later turned out to be distorted or completely incorrect (for example, go and check what color C-3PO’s legs are). The name “Mandela effect” comes from one of the most widespread false memories: the belief that Nelson Mandela, future president of South Africa, died in prison in the 1980s, while in reality, he lived until 2013. Several shared false memories, such as the aforementioned, are brought by some as proof of the existence of parallel dimensions (a very popular theory among web conspiracy theorists).
In the middle of the night, Johanna is on the run with her daughter Alice and a mysterious technological device marked with the NASA logo. After reaching a cabin in the snow, the woman begins to experience some paranormal phenomena: the reality around her seems to constantly change, and Alice disappears into thin air. From outside she hears the little girl’s voice echoing, alone and terrified. Johanna finds her and takes her back to the safety of the cabin, but here she finds… another Alice waiting for her. Or maybe it’s the same Alice she left shortly before? Five weeks earlier: Johanna is in orbit, as a member of the team of astronauts on board the ISS, the International Space Station. Just as she prepares to go on an excursion outside, one of her colleagues at NASA, on the orders of the person in charge Henry Caldera, starts a scientific experiment in zero gravity which apparently should allow the discovery of a new state of matter.
Seconds later, an unknown object hits the station, causing a serious accident. Transmissions with Earth are interrupted, flames break out and evacuation procedures are triggered: not everyone manages to survive, and Jo finds herself alone in the abandoned station. On Earth, her daughter Alice, her husband Magnus, and all the workers are shocked and rooting for her. The cynical manager Caldera, on the other hand, seems to only care about the fate of the device that contains the outcome of the experiment: that object could change the fate of humanity, and for him, it is much more important than the life of an astronaut. In the end, Jo will be able to discover what hit the space station, and she will miraculously return home: here, however, she will begin to fluctuate between multiple parallel realities, and she will discover that some parts of her life seem to have disappeared into thin air.
Constellation Review Episode 1-3 and Analysis
Constellation has two recurring characteristics of Apple TV+ TV series: it has a one-word title, and it is sensationally well made. The plurality of languages, points of view, and perspectives catapults, or rather sends, the audience into a hyper-realistic narrative space, characterized by the relationships between ESA, NASA, Roscosmos, and the other agencies involved. This is counterbalanced by a mystery which however remains within the confines of science, even if the effects are the closest psychologically to the worst fantasies of every parent, or every lover. The final result is a true and exciting restlessness, a story that captures and makes you reflect. In short, yet another successful TV series from Apple TV+.
For the first 3 episodes, Constellation maintains the same level of Suspense, making us formulate different scenarios and responses to what we are seeing each time. It doesn’t give precise answers, it transports us from one reality to another without making us understand what the truth is and above all what the cause of what is happening is. It’s real? Is it just imagination? Noomi Rapace is perfect in her lead role, forcing us to watch as she faces this series of events and works to find answers. Overall, the specificity of the show helps create such a solid texture and believability for the setting, even as things get stranger and expose the deceptions of alternate history and conspiracy thrillers. As time passes, Jo realizes the differences between what she remembers and what reality is. The other character played by Jonathan Banks, Henry Caldera, responsible for the quantum project that made all this possible, also has a counterpart, the colder and more grumpy Bud.
Constellation takes inspiration precisely from this phenomenon, building a story of tension and uncertainty around a protagonist who is increasingly alienated from reality and is unable to recognize the world to which she has returned (from small things, such as the color of the family car, to his most intimate relationships). What starts as a survival adventure with a space setting, close to films like Apollo 13 and Gravity, soon flows into the paranoid solitude of Duncan Jones’ Moon, where some memory lapses and nightmarish visions begin to anticipate what awaits us: an anxious psychological thriller that will call into question all the certainties of its protagonist. From the point of view of the technological context, the focus is on credibility, with an aesthetic close to current instruments for space travel, where the only truly futuristic element is the device at the center of the fateful experiment, the probable cause of the dramatic events.
Constellation brings forward various suggestions, ranging from “Alice in Wonderland” to the legend of the changeling, directly evoked in some moments of the series. Both stories are well rooted in the collective imagination, which talks about characters estranged from the world and the people around them, in which they are unable to find characteristics and peculiarities that are familiar to them. It all feels somehow bizarre, if not hostile. At the center of this psycho-science fiction bad trip, there are, however, human relationships, which will pay the heaviest price for these alterations, whether real or merely perceived. A dramatic component to which the excellent cast of Constellation manages to give credibility and depth. An excellent Noomi Rapace and the always good Jonathan Banks stand out, here in a double role that we reserve the right to reveal to you.
More than the various sci-fi titles already mentioned at the beginning, Constellation seems rather to approach the mystery genre, drawing heavily on the atmospheres and metaphysical enigmas of cult series such as The OA and Dark. Unlike what a title like “Constellation” might suggest, the true “deep and unexplored space” we talk about in the title of the paragraph is not at all the interstellar frontier, which in this series only serves as a “launching platform”, and then quickly bring the story back to earth. At the center of attention are, if anything, the abysses of the human mind and the border between everyday life and the paranormal, that is, the liminal areas that act as a crossroads between multiple realities. Without delving further into spoiler territory, we can certainly praise the power of the scenographic settings and the goodness of the direction of the series, which also thanks to a truly substantial budget gives us breathtaking sequences and atmospheres, worthy of the major productions for the big screen.
Another undoubted strong point certainly lies in the cast, and above all in the two main performers, who manage to effectively convey the atmosphere of mystery and the great conspiracy that lurks behind the scenes. For her part, Noomi Rapace, who had already given a valid acting performance in deep space as the archaeologist Elizabeth Shaw in Prometheus, the 2011 prequel to Alien directed by Ridley Scott, turns out to be an excellent choice for the role of the protagonist Johanna Eriksson. Throughout the eight episodes, the Swedish actress manages to alternate humanity, desperation, and paranoia without ever getting carried away or losing credibility in the eyes of the viewer. Her chemistry with her husband Magnus and her daughter Alice is really solid, and she helps to outline an authentic and convincing character.
After playing the role of a killer with a heart of gold in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, the inscrutable Jonathan “Mike” Banks is here instead called upon to play the double role of Henry Caldera, a cold, cynical scientist ready to do everything to achieve their goals, and of Bud Caldera, a gruff and irascible former astronaut now the protagonist of various conventions, also the protagonist of a mysterious accident. We won’t tell you anything else about these two characters and their bizarre dualism a la Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde, but we will tell you that it is precisely from Banks’ charisma that many of the greatest emotions in the series come from! However, reassurance is necessary: on the narrative front, we can assure you that Constellation will answer questions and repay expectations, giving us a second part of the season with truly solid and fast-paced rhythms. However, the first three episodes could hinder the process of approaching the series, characterized by a decidedly irregular and at times not very engaging narrative pace.
The objective of Peter Harness and director Michelle MacLaren is clear: to disorientate the viewer and build an enigmatic, cold, and disarming scenario, also drawing heavily on the language of horror. However, things don’t always work as planned: in the first episodes the script ends up being too asymmetrical and could lead some viewers to get lost along the way, throw in the towel and “stop in space”. The pace changes decidedly when the series brings its feet back to earth (not just metaphorically!) and begins to outline a suggestive conspiracy-tinged plot, stopping trying to amaze at all costs and finally starting to tell the story. Ultimately, despite a false start, Constellation still turns out to be a solid, promising, and very original series.
Constellation Review Episode 1-3: The Last Words
Constellation uses a sci-fi gimmick to create a tense and disturbing psychological thriller. The series starts as a classic space survival adventure, reminiscent of films such as Apollo 13 and Gravity, and then leads to paranoia and nightmares. Between altered memories and disturbing visions, the story focuses on an increasingly alienated protagonist who is unable to recognize the reality in which she finds herself. The first to suffer from these alterations will be her relationships, especially with the people closest to her; a dramatic component which is given credibility by the excellent cast, in which Noomi Rapace and Jonathan Banks stand out. Constellation is an evocative and compelling breath of fresh air in the science fiction catalog of Apple TV+: despite stumbling a little too much in the first episodes, as the story continues the series offers us an increasingly irresistible mystery.
Constellation Review Episode 1-3: Evocative and Compelling Breath Of Fresh Air In The Science Fiction - Filmyhype
Director: Peter Harness
Date Created: 2024-02-21 13:48
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Pros
- Intriguing Premise: The show explores themes of memory, identity, and the potential dangers of space travel, leaving viewers engaged in speculation.
- Strong Performances: Noomi Rapace delivers a compelling performance as the troubled astronaut Jo, and the supporting cast adds depth to the story.
- Visually Stunning: The series boasts striking cinematography and production design, capturing the stark beauty and isolation of space.
- Thought-Provoking: Constellation raises interesting questions about the nature of reality and the consequences of pushing technological boundaries.
Cons
- Pacing Issues: Some viewers find the show's pacing slow and repetitive, with the central mystery taking too long to unravel.
- Unclear Answers: The ending leaves many questions unanswered, potentially frustrating those seeking clear resolutions.
- Emotional Disconnect: Although technically impressive, the characters' emotional journeys might not resonate with all viewers.
