3 Star

An Eco-Warrior in Space.

Writer, director Magdalena Lauritsch brings us her first feature film, a multilingual warning about what we are to doing to planet Earth. Co-written by Jessica Lind. A film funded by Vienna Film Fund, Austrian Film  Institute.

 

The intro brings us a tale of woe for the near future, 2056 Earths’ atmosphere has deteriorated beyond a critical state, only the rich can live in domes, which filter the contaminated air. Big corporations have replaced governments and deleted states, conflicts are settled by corporation armies, all attempts to find refuge in space have failed. But a presence is always kept on the space station Rubikon.

Rubikon is the property of the NIBRA corporation, it has been expanded upon the old ISSS and is always manned by a multicultural crew. This crew is searching for a way that will give clean air to the long-suffering planet.

Heading towards Rubikon is Commander Hannah Wagner (Julia Franz Richter, The Diver Inside, L’animale) and doctor Gavin Abbott (George Blagden, Vikings (TV Series), How You Look at Me), as they encounter difficulties with the ‘Nivicon’ guidance system, and Hannah has to dock manually against company orders.

Once the hatch is open they meet the returning crew, commander Philipp Jenson (Nicholas Monu, The Glass (TV Mini Series), Gefangene), Tracy Sato (Daniela Kong, Anfang 80, Wild Mouse), Danilo Krylow (Konstantin Frolov, Stronger Than Blood, The Big Black), son of algae scientist Dimitri Krylow (Mark Ivanir, Bye Bye Germany, The Gordin Cell (TV Series)), the man that has all the CEO’s of NIBRA calling him the man that could save life on Earth.

They spend a day preparing for the old crew’s return, but ground control says there is a large cloud moving in and that they will have to go around it in their descent, not a problem with the Navicon. This cloud is no ordinary cloud, it is a deadly dense toxic layer that blocks out the laser communications, which is fatal for the returning crew.

The race is on to see whose ideologies will win through, Gavin the eco-warrior sent into space to save him from the gasses, Hannah, who has a military mission to complete, or Dimitri the genius scientist that believes that the algae is his project and no-ones else. The world’s future is in three people’s hands.

Rubikon is an early warning for the planet, as well as a comment on social divides and the influence large corporations have on governments.

Rubikon is available on DVD and Amazon Prime, Digital