The trailers for Europa Report promised an edge of your seat thrill ride guaranteed to satisfy the hunger of science fiction fans everywhere. Unfortunately, the film is a typical bumbling mess that pits a scientific crew against the elements of one of Jupiter's moons and a never ending string of bad luck. As expected with most movies like this, every bad thing that can happen will happen and these geniuses can't figure out that they should just stop doing stupid things.Europa Report starts out strong in the first few minutes but quickly vanquishes itself in every possible way. While the premise starts out mildly unique, it begins treading on familiar territory by the twenty five minute mark. Seriously, how many things can go wrong and why weren't these highly trained individuals prepared for scenarios that could arise in the unknown reaches of space? The only aspect of the movie that fully delivered were the visual elements. Unlike most sci-fi movies, the director of Europa Report takes a minimalist approach and it works when he's not too busy making his characters behave like idiots.
I see no reason to suggest seeing Europa Report. As a film, it has nothing new to offer to a genre that is hurting for originality. Do yourself a favor. Save the few dollars from renting Europa Report and go see Elysium when it gets released in a few weeks. That looks like its going to deliver the goods. But, if you decide to watch this movie, please know that you'll be shaking your head in disbelief at the conclusion. All other criticisms aside, the ending is one of the worst things I've ever seen.
-Review by Chris George