Voyagers Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.0
Extras		2.5
Overall		2.5

Voyagers Blu-ray Movie Review

Lord of the Fliers.

Reviewed by Jeffrey Kauffman June 10, 2021

If Lost in Space overtly exploited its connection to Johann David Wyss' Swiss Family Robinson in both its focal family's surname as well as marketing efforts which regularly described the group as the Space Family Robinson, Voyagers seems to want to be a bit more circumspect in divulging that its "high concept" (in more ways than one) might cheekily be called Lord of the Flies in Space. There's quite a bit of sidebar material distracting from that underlying central premise, but when you have a bunch of young(ish) types without any adult supervision reverting to an almost atavistic feral state, the connections are not hard to see. In the relatively near future of 2063, climate change has made the Earth uninhabitable, and the search for new planetary "digs" has resulted in a successful prospect, though the aimed for planet is so far away it will take two or three generations to get there. A plan is hatched by Richard Alling (Colin Farrell) whereby thirty (artificially inseminated) children are raised in an isolated high tech facility so that they don't become attached to things like, you know, trees and birds and the sky. They're also being schooled in a variety of scientific tasks that will be needed on a flight from which they'll never return. The plan is to have them grow up and eventually procreate on the ship, with their descendants finally able to make a new start once the spaceship arrives at its target planet. What could possibly go wrong?

Initially the kids are supposed to take the journey into space by themselves, but Richard insists the whole mad scheme will be better if he accompanies them, and the film simply segues to the blastoff which does in fact include Richard among the gaggle of tots. Things then segue again to find the whole crew ten years older, with Richard shepherding what are now teens in their daily tasks. It doesn't take long for a presumed ménage à trois to develop between focal characters Christopher (Tye Sheridan), Zac (Fionn Whitehead) and Sela (Lily-Rose Depp), even if the kids are surprisingly non-hormonal (which of course turns out to be a subplot). The fact that writer and director Neil Burger has already planted a seed of sorts with a very brief vignette early in the film documenting Zac as a little boy informing Richard how frightened he is will probably alert anyone with any familiarity with the Syd Field handbook on screenwriting to know who is going to end up being the film's villain.

A scene which seems almost deliberately lifted from (or at least referential to) 2001: A Space Odyssey ultimately dispatches with Richard, and in the meantime Christopher and Zac have discovered that a mysterious blue liquid the kids are required to drink every day may in fact be drugging them, a la saltpeter in days of yore. A certain "just say no" ethos breaks out in terms of ingesting the fluid, and the result is a descent into primal urges and fury, all in the claustrophobic confines of a spaceship hurtling toward some unseen destination.

Voyagers died a very quick death at the box office, part of which is no doubt due to the lingering effects of a global pandemic, but even in cheerier times, my hunch is the film would have been seen as too relentlessly derivative to ever generate a ton of interest. Performances are generally earnest, and the production design is at least decent (if, again, derivative), but the story doesn't really offer any significant surprises, despite efforts at introducing things like "secret chambers" in the spacecraft and the hint that some Alien or other may have penetrated the confines of the vehicle. I personally would have loved the plot to have averted so many clichés, especially in the more or less happy ending it presents. In that regard I couldn't help but think how much more compelling would it have been to have had a spaceship with no "adult" survivors and just a baby or two arriving at the "new, improved" home planet.

Voyagers Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Voyagers is presented on Blu-ray courtesy of Lionsgate Films with an AVC encoded 1080p transfer in 2.39:1. The IMDb has virtually no technical data, but I found some online interviews with cinematographer Enrique Chediak where he mentions that despite having frequently used Arri models in the past, he and director Neil Burger opted for the Sony Venice on this shoot due to the palette it can produce. I didn't find any authoritative information on the DI (and would love some if anyone can point me to some, since I have the 4K UHD version to review as well and would like to know the source resolution). That said, the Venice has source resolutions higher than 4K, so I'm assuming the DI was finished at 4K, especially since detail levels tend to be so impressive despite an almost monochromatic production design and gradings that frequently emphasize cool blue or purple tones, with a couple of notable detours through red territory. The lack of real outdoor material aside from a couple of opening scenes may tend to deprive the aesthetic of variety, but there are interesting touches nonetheless, with some askew framings that can emphasize faces, where fine detail is often excellent. CGI is relatively limited, but frankly doesn't look fantastic in some of the blast off moments, though the first look at the Humanitas spaceship is nicely rendered.

Voyagers Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Some audiophiles may blanch a bit if they go to the Audio menu on this disc and just see "English Dolby 5.1", thinking that this is another Lionsgate release with only lossy audio, but the back cover listing of Dolby TrueHD 5.1 turns out to be correct. The film's sound design is probably inescapably tamped down by the fact that so much of the story plays out in the claustrophobic confines of the spaceship (as mutantly huge as it's supposed to be). There are moments of good immersion, and even a burst of LFE or two (as in the blast off scene), but a lot of the sonics here are rather subtle, consigned to distant creaking or thumping noises on the spacecraft, or the occasional moment of chaos with large groups once behaviors start to unravel. There are a couple of well done effects which won't be spoiled here, other than to say if you hear a big whoosh in an airlock, your days may be numbered. Dialogue is rendered cleanly and clearly throughout. Optional English and Spanish subtitles are available.

Voyagers Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Born for This: The Cast of Voyagers (HD; 11:12) offers some decent interviews with the principal cast and crew, who discuss their characters and the film's plot in general.


• Against Type: Unlearning Human Nature (HD; 7:21) focuses on the supposed need of the performers to offer initial characterizations devoid of typical human behavior.


• Survival of the Fittest: The Physicality of Voyagers (HD; 4:38) features Neil Burger and members of the cast discussing some of the demands of the shoot, which some may find slightly ironic, since some of the clips inserted into this piece simply show the characters running through hallways, as happens repeatedly in the film.


• On the Surface: The Visual Style of Voyagers (HD; 9:42) looks at cinematographer Enrique Chediak's contributions and has some fun behind the scenes footage.


• Hidden Chambers: Tour the Humanitas (HD; 7:20) offers Kevin Houlihan as tourguide.

Voyagers Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It's kind of interesting to see Lionsgate lavishing such care on a film that barely made a ripple at the box office. Both the above average amount of supplements on this disc as well as the fact that there's a 4K UHD version being released in addition to this 1080 version would seem to indicate Lionsgate thinks it has something on its hands (or is perhaps contractually obligated to act as if it does), but Voyagers is simply too rote for its own good. There are some decent performances here and the film is well staged and nicely designed, but maybe Neil Burger should have searched for a better idea than recycling Lord of the Flies in outer space. Technical merits are solid and the supplementary package very enjoyable, for those who are considering a purchase.