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Lead Critic for the site, as well as serving as an editor when needed.
What is the cost of memory? How far back do we actually remember? Do you linger on something silly you said in the fifth grade? Moreover, what is reality and truth?
Ash is one of the year’s first great films. Executive producer and director Flying Lotus (real name Steven Ellison) creates a world that is both an homage to and a throwback to old-school filmmaking of the same bag. Touting with influences from films such as 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), Halloween (1978), and Blade Runner (1982), Ash seeks to question memory and how far we’re willing to go to uncover the truth, with some bold visuals to match.
Written by Jonni Remmler, Eiza González leads Ash in a masterful performance as Riya, a member of a spaceship crew on a distant mission from Earth situated on an international space station. Aaron Paul matches wits perfectly with her, while Flying Lotus also co-stars as another crew member. Science-fiction expert Neill Blomkamp (District 9, Elysium, Chappie) serves as an executive producer as well.
A Survivor
Feeling like something from a cyberpunk story, Ash begins as Riya mysteriously awakens on the space station with no memory of how she got there. As she makes her way through, Riya discovers her entire crew dead and one member missing. The moment the film begins, Riya and even the audience begin to piece together what really happened.
Ash doesn’t provide all the exposition one could somehow want. This makes Remmler’s screenplay work so well, even with a few predictable beats towards the conclusion. The biggest issue with cinema today is the innate need to provide unnecessary exposition, whether through dialogue or action when it is never needed. Ash never actually explains what happened to Earth and why the crew needs to find another planet. There are a few mentions of other crews throughout the universe, but that helps to situate and make sense of the far future setting as well. The mystery dissolves in a wicked fashion, as Riya subtly pieces back together her very mind. The truth, it seems, is always harder to confront than the reality in our minds.
The Layers of the RLJE/ Shudder Film
On the surface, humans and cockroaches are similar in nature, i.e. we are both survivors. Humans fight to the very bloody end if they need to sometimes. When we’re in distress, the hairs on our neck stand up, the heart beats faster, and fear makes people fight. When a very disturbing parasite wants the air we breathe, will we fight or be consumed into nothing? Riya faces that very thought in the final act of Ash. Similar to The Shape stalking Laurie Strode or the slow distress of Hal taking over Discovery One, this weird, intergalactic, parasitic entity wants everything aboard Riya’s station, even a crew member to act as an avatar, apparently.
The cost of existence can be difficult as well. Some of the dialogue between Brion (Paul) and Riya speaks to the cost of existence within ourselves and even humans as a species. Several other crews seek the same goal as Riya’s: to essentially find another Earth. Riya constantly seeks to make sure her fellow crew members exist with her, and even within her memories, even if Brion might be lying. One scene of her double-checking something she knows to be sure with another crew member also speaks to the humanity González brings to the film as Riya.
Visual Components
From the first frame of the film, cinematographer Richard Bluck and Flying Lotus create a visceral cyberpunk future. The lighting is constantly in play with Riya’s emotions or mood, even when she remembers something more violent. Additionally, the light tends to be red, whereas some scenes involving Brion might be lit in yellow or blue. Editor Bryan Shaw’s (Evil Dead, Ash vs Evil Dead, Power Rangers Dino Fury, Evil Dead Rise) cuts and assemblages add to Ash‘s rawness. The narrative is revealed with flashbacks and glances into Riya’s mind as she truly uncovers what happened. Shaw’s editing is clean and keeps the audience at the edge of their seats at times, with flashes of craziness playing out the film’s key moments, even making us question what we have just seen.
The film takes huge visual inspiration from other distant stories (Blade Runner), and the color palette is quite intense in the best way. Ash‘s visuals are simply striking at times. Production designer Ross McGarva’s set pieces and costume designer Aitor Throup’s outfitting are also keys in Ash; they help create the best environment the film seeks to showcase. It feels like one could actually be in this station. Deirdre Cowley’s prosthetics designs (and make-up & hair) are some of the best displayed in this type of horror picture. The one creature design and the gore are so fun to watch on screen. The RLJE/ Shudder film’s parasite is creepy enough on its own.
Other Cinematic Elements
Flying Lotus also scores Ash, creating something that can be paired with the film or meant for a casually listen. His score invokes Vangelis’s iconic Blade Runner synths, or along with sound designer Gareth van Niekerk’s excellence sound work, the eerie work of John Carpenter’s original 1978 masterpiece. The score alone is simply epic and perhaps one of the best scores in a horror picture.
Final Thoughts on Flying Lotus’s RLJE/ Shudder Film, Ash
Ash reveals the true nature of the event Riya’s crew suffered. In the best fashion, the film’s final cut to black begs the question: did Riya truly escape her parasitic foe? Where is she truly headed after leaving the soul-consuming planet? Did she dream parts of this outrageous ordeal? The film also leaves other questions in the mind, which is always one of the best parts of any film.
Ash is one of the year’s best surprises. Even with a few predictable scripting beats, Remmler crafts a wild story with Eiza González giving the main character and story a perfect dose of humanity. Flying Lotus puts the story on screen in a commanding fashion, creating an otherworldly, creepy film.
4.5/5 stars.
Flying Lotus’s Ash is now playing in theaters and will stream via Shudder later this year!
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Lead Critic for the site, as well as serving as an editor when needed.
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