Passengers (2016 film)

Passengers is a 2016 American science-fiction romance film directed by Morten Tyldum, written by Jon Spaihts and starring Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt. The supporting cast features Michael Sheen, Laurence Fishburne, and Andy García. The film follows two passengers on an interstellar spacecraft carrying thousands of people to a colony 120-years-traveling-distance from Earth, when the two are awakened 90 years early from their induced hibernation.

Passengers
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMorten Tyldum
Written byJon Spaihts
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyRodrigo Prieto
Edited byMaryann Brandon
Music byThomas Newman
Production
companies
Distributed bySony Pictures Releasing
Release dates
Running time
116 minutes[2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$110–150 million[3][4]
Box office$303.1 million[3]

The script was written in 2007 by Spaihts, but languished in development hell with multiple actors attached and detached from it over the years until Sony Pictures Entertainment acquired its rights in late 2014. Lawrence, Pratt and Tyldum quickly joined the project, and filming took place from September 2015 to February 2016 in Atlanta. It was produced by Village Roadshow Pictures, Start Motion Pictures, Original Film, LStar Capital, Wanda Pictures and Company Films, and was the last film from Columbia Pictures with the involvement of Village Roadshow Pictures.

Passengers premiered at the Regency Village Theater in Los Angeles on December 14, 2016, and was released theatrically in the United States by Columbia Pictures on December 21, 2016. It received mixed reviews, with praise for Pratt and Lawrence's performances, Thomas Newman's musical score, and its visual style and production values, but was criticized for its plot and characters.[5][6] It grossed $304 million worldwide and was nominated for Best Original Score and Best Production Design at the 89th Academy Awards.[7]

Plot

edit

The Avalon, a sleeper ship transporting 5,000 colonists and 258 crew members in hibernation pods, is traveling from Earth to the planet Homestead II, a 120-year journey as part of a mass exodus of Earth's population due to ecocide and the collapse of the biosphere.[8] After only 30 years, an asteroid collision damages the ship, causing a malfunction that awakens passenger Jim Preston, a mechanical engineer, 90 years too early.

After a year of isolation, with only an android barman named Arthur for company, Jim grows despondent and contemplates suicide until he notices Aurora Lane, a beautiful young woman inside a pod. He considers reviving her for companionship, but struggles doing so, knowing it is morally wrong and will preclude her intended life on their destination planet. He eventually awakens her, letting her believe it was a malfunction. Devastated at having to live out her life on the ship, Aurora unsuccessfully tries to reenter hibernation. Resigned to the situation, she begins writing about her experience.

Over the next year, the two fall in love. Just before Jim intends to propose to Aurora, Arthur inadvertently reveals the truth about her awakening. Distraught and enraged, Aurora berates, shuns, and physically attacks Jim. She furiously rejects his apologies and avoids contact with him.

Sometime later, another pod failure awakens Gus Mancuso, a deck chief officer. Using Gus's employee code, the group accesses the ship's bridge and discovers multiple cascading failures throughout the ship's systems. If left unrepaired, the ship will fail, causing the passengers and crew to perish. When Gus falls critically ill, the ship's automated medical suite, the Autodoc, diagnoses pansystemic necrosis and gives him hours to live. Gus attributes it to his hibernation pod's multiple failures. Before dying, he gives Jim and Aurora his ID badge and employee code to access crew-only areas.

Jim and Aurora find hull breaches from the asteroid collision two years earlier. The computer module administering the ship's fusion reactor power plant has been critically damaged, causing the cascading malfunctions as the other systems' computing power was diverted in an attempt to maintain it. They replace the damaged module, but when the computer attempts to vent the reactor to extinguish a runaway plasma reaction, the exterior vent fails. Jim is forced to spacewalk and vent the plasma from outside, using the manual controls in the vent tube.

Jim discovers that he must remain in the tube to keep the vent open while Aurora initiates venting from inside the ship. Revealing her enduring feelings for him, she admits she is terrified of losing him and being left alone. Jim improvises a heat shield and survives the venting but is blasted into space as his tether snaps, and his damaged spacesuit begins losing oxygen. Aurora retrieves a clinically dead Jim from space and resuscitates him in the Autodoc. The Avalon, its reactor repaired, returns to normal operations.

After burying Gus in space, Jim learns the Autodoc can function as a hibernation pod for one person, and he insists that Aurora use it for the remainder of the voyage. Realizing she would never see Jim again, she chooses to remain awake with him.

Eighty-eight years later, the ship's crew awaken on schedule, shortly before arrival at Homestead II. In the ship's grand concourse, they discover a huge tree with trailing vines, lush vegetation, flying birds, and a small cabin. A recording of Aurora's story describes the wonderful life she and Jim shared on the Avalon.

Cast

edit

Emma Clarke, Chris Edgerly, Matt Corboy, Fred Melamed, and screenwriter Jon Spaihts perform as the voices of the Avalon, InfoMat, video game, observatory, and Autodoc, respectively.

Production

edit

Development

edit
 
Production Designer Guy Hendrix Dyas, Producer Ori Marmur and writer Jon Spaihts on set during filming.

In Jon Spaihts's original 2007 script, Aurora's surname was Dunn.[9] At one point in the film's development, it was set to star Keanu Reeves and Emily Blunt.[10] Other actors temporarily attached to it included Reese Witherspoon and Rachel McAdams.[11] Brian Kirk was originally set to make his feature directorial debut with Reeves in the lead.[12][13] On December 5, 2014, it was announced that Sony Pictures Entertainment had won the rights to the film,[14] and in early 2015, Morten Tyldum was chosen to direct.[15] He had always wanted to do a big-scale sci-fi movie, but also stressed the importance of character development over effects.[16]

The final cast was announced between February 2015 and January 2016.[17][18][19][20] Lawrence was paid $20 million against 30% of the profit after the movie broke even. Pratt received $12 million.[11][21]

Filming

edit

Principal photography began on September 15, 2015 at Pinewood Atlanta Studios in Fayette County, Georgia,[22][23] with most of it involving the two leads only. Rodrigo Prieto was cinematographer, and Maryann Brandon was film editor.[24][25] Filming wrapped on February 12, 2016.[26]

Music

edit

Thomas Newman composed the score for Passengers.[27] Spaihts said that he wrote Passengers while listening to Newman's previous scores.[28] Imagine Dragons also recorded the song "Levitate" for the soundtrack, which was released on November 29, 2016.[29] The Chinese theme song for the film is "Light Years Away", composed by G.E.M.; it became the first Chinese music video to surpass 200 million views in September 2019.[30]

Marketing

edit

At the 2016 CinemaCon, Passengers was featured by Sony Pictures chairman Thomas Rothman with Lawrence and Pratt in attendance. A teaser trailer of unfinished footage was shown afterward.[31] The first official images of the film were released on August 12, 2016.[32]

Release

edit

Theatrical

edit

The film had its world premiere at the Regency Village Theater in December 14, 2016. It was released in the United States by Sony Pictures Entertainment on December 21, 2016.[33]

Home media

edit

Passengers was released on DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray on March 14, 2017, and made available on digital HD from Amazon Video and iTunes on March 7, 2017.[34] On March 14, 2017, Passengers: Awakening, a virtual-reality experience based on the film launched for Oculus Rift and HTC Vive.[35]

Reception

edit

Box office

edit

Passengers grossed $100 million in the United States and Canada and $203.1 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $303.1 million, against a net production budget of $110 million.[4][3] It was the second-highest grossing original live-action Hollywood release of 2016, after La La Land.[36]

Passengers opened alongside Sing and Assassin's Creed, and was initially expected to gross around $50 million from 3,478 theaters over its first six days, although the studio anticipated a more conservative $35 million debut.[37][38] After making $1.2 million from Tuesday night previews[39] and $4.1 million on its first day, projections for the six-day opening were lowered to $27 million.[40] It went on to gross $15.1 million in its opening weekend (a six-day total of $30 million), finishing third at the box office behind Rogue One and Sing.[41] It became the third-biggest original live-action domestic release of 2016 behind La La Land ($149 million) and Central Intelligence ($126 million).[36]

Critical response

edit

On Rotten Tomatoes, Passengers holds an approval rating of 30% based on 288 reviews, with an average rating of 5/10. The website's critical consensus reads: "Passengers proves Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence work well together–and that even their chemistry isn't enough to overcome a fatally flawed story."[42] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 41 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[43] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B" on an A+ to F scale, while PostTrak reported filmgoers gave it a 77% overall positive score.[41]

Mick LaSalle of The San Francisco Chronicle gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, writing: "Despite the confinement and the limited cast, Passengers has moments of intense drama that take the actors to places of extreme feeling."[44] James Dyer of Empire gave the film 4 out of 5 stars, calling it "as surprisingly traditional as it is undeniably effective", and describing it as "Titanic amongst the stars" and "a touching, heartfelt tale of loss and love for the Gravity generation".[45] Peter Keough of The Boston Globe gave it 2.5 out of 4 stars, writing: "Perhaps as a well-written play for a cast of three, Passengers might have been first class. Instead, it's just another mediocre thrill ride."[46] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian called the film an "appealing sci-fi romance", but criticized its final act as an "anticlimax", giving it 3 out of 5 stars.[47] Sheri Linden of The Hollywood Reporter said it "concocts a sort of Titanic in outer space, with dollops of 'Sleeping Beauty' and Gravity thrown into the high-concept mix." She praised the striking visual design and elegant costumes, but said that the "heavy-handed mix of life-or-death exigencies and feel-good bromides finally feels like a case of more being less."[1]

Rebecca Hawkes of The Telegraph described the film as not a romance, but "a creepy ode to manipulation", describing the action as a "central act of violence" that is softened and justified.[48] Andrew Pulver of The Guardian called it an "interstellar version of social-media stalking" with "a fantastically creepy start" that, contrary to romantic comedies that managed to "plane down" the nastiness of stalking tactics, presented them in a way where they were "gruesomely inescapable".[49] Alissa Wilkinson of Vox called it "a fantasy of Stockholm syndrome, in which the captured eventually identifies with and even loves the captor" and "a really disturbing wish fulfillment fantasy".[50]

Lawrence was initially proud of the film, but agreed with suggestions that it might have benefited from a different edit, starting with her character waking up.[6][51] Later, she expressed regret over starring in the film, saying that Adele had advised her against it and that she should have listened.[52][53] Producer Neal H. Moritz said he loved the film and thought the script was one of the best he had ever read. He pointed out that it was well received at test screenings, but that shortly before its release the media picked up on one review and "it became a mantra". He "thought it was a really unfair thing because I think it's a beautiful film I couldn't be more proud of."[6]

Accolades

edit
List of awards and nominations
Award Date of ceremony Category Recipients Result Ref.
Academy Awards February 26, 2017 Best Original Score Thomas Newman Nominated [54][7]
Best Production Design Guy Hendrix Dyas and Gene Serdena
Art Directors Guild Awards February 11, 2017 Excellence in Production Design for a Fantasy Film Guy Hendrix Dyas Won [55]
Golden Trailer Awards June 6, 2017 Best Action Sony Pictures Entertainment Nominated [56]
Best Motion Poster
Saturn Awards June 28, 2017 Best Science Fiction Film Passengers Nominated [57]
Best Actor Chris Pratt
Best Actress Jennifer Lawrence
Best Music Thomas Newman
Best Production Design Guy Hendrix Dyas

References

edit
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Linden, Sheri (December 15, 2016). "'Passengers': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on October 1, 2020. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
  2. ^ "Passengers (12A)". British Board of Film Classification. December 8, 2016. Archived from the original on August 15, 2018. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  3. ^ a b c "Passengers (2016)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Archived from the original on April 8, 2019. Retrieved May 12, 2017.
  4. ^ a b FilmL.A. (May 2017). "2016 Feature Film Study" (PDF). FilmL.A. Feature Film Study. Archived (PDF) from the original on July 31, 2017. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  5. ^ Giles, Jeff (December 21, 2016). "Sing Is Mostly On Key". Rotten Tomatoes. Archived from the original on November 27, 2017. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
  6. ^ a b c Romano, Nick (August 9, 2017). "Jennifer Lawrence Gets Candid About 'Passengers' Criticism". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on May 12, 2019. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
  7. ^ a b "Oscar Nominations: Complete List". Variety. January 24, 2017. Archived from the original on January 24, 2017. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  8. ^ Valls Oyarzun, Eduardo; Gualberto Valverde, Rebeca; Malla García, Noelia; Colom Jiménez, María; Cordero Sánchez, Rebeca, eds. (2020). "Chapter 17: Ecocritical Archaelogies of Global Ecocide in Twenty-First-Centurty Post-Apocalyptic Films". Avenging nature: the role of nature in modern and contemporary art and literature. Ecocritical theory and practice. Lanham Boulder NewYork London: Lexington Books. ISBN 978-1-7936-2144-3.
  9. ^ Kroll, Justin (July 17, 2015). "Michael Sheen Joins Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt in 'Passengers'". Variety. Archived from the original on November 18, 2016. Retrieved November 25, 2016.
  10. ^ Hawkes, Rebecca (November 24, 2016). "Passengers: watch the new trailer, plus all you need to know about Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt's sci-fi romance" Archived February 14, 2018, at the Wayback Machine. The Daily Telegraph.
  11. ^ a b Kim Masters (June 16, 2015). "Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt's Sci-Fi 'Passengers' Nears Green Light After Sony Behind-the-Scenes Drama". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on June 16, 2015. Retrieved April 13, 2016.
  12. ^ "Keanu Reeves Sci-Fi Film 'Passengers' Gets a 'Game of Thrones' Director". screenrant.com. April 18, 2013. Archived from the original on July 26, 2013. Retrieved July 16, 2013.
  13. ^ "Sci-Fi Pic 'Passengers' to Star Keanu Reeves, with Brian Kirk Directing and Wayfare Entertainment Producing". Deadline Hollywood. April 18, 2013. Archived from the original on June 22, 2013. Retrieved July 16, 2013.
  14. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (December 5, 2014). "Sony Wins Auction For Jon Spaihts Sci-Fi Script 'Passengers'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on December 10, 2014. Retrieved December 7, 2014.
  15. ^ Fleming, Mike Jr. (January 27, 2015). "Sony Engaging 'Imitation Game' Helmer Morten Tyldum For Space Saga 'Passengers'". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 29, 2015. Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  16. ^ Brian Truitt (September 20, 2016). "Sneak peek: 'Passengers' puts Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt in space". USA Today. Archived from the original on September 19, 2016. Retrieved September 20, 2016.
  17. ^ Kroll, Justin (February 6, 2015). "Jennifer Lawrence in Talks for Sci-Fi Drama 'Passengers'". Variety. Archived from the original on February 8, 2015. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  18. ^ Sneider, Jeff (February 6, 2015). "Chris Pratt in Talks to Star Opposite Jennifer Lawrence in Sony's 'Passengers'". TheWrap. Archived from the original on February 8, 2015. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  19. ^ Kroll, Justin (July 17, 2015). "Michael Sheen Joins Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt in 'Passengers'". Variety. Archived from the original on November 18, 2016. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
  20. ^ Ford, Rebecca; Siegel, Tatiana (August 5, 2015). "Laurence Fishburne Joining Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt in 'Passengers'". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on August 7, 2015. Retrieved August 6, 2015.
  21. ^ "Hollywood Salaries 2016: Who Got Raises (and Who Didn't), From Movie Stars to Showrunners". The Hollywood Reporter. September 29, 2016. Archived from the original on October 2, 2016. Retrieved October 1, 2016.
  22. ^ "Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt's Latest Film "Passengers" Has Started Filming in Atlanta; JLaw Spotted in Freshly Bleached Blonde Locks". Venture Capital Post. September 25, 2015. Archived from the original on March 13, 2016. Retrieved September 27, 2015.
  23. ^ Barraclough, Leo (November 18, 2016). "Pinewood Atlanta Studios Selects Tech Guru Frank Patterson as President". Variety. Archived from the original on April 8, 2022. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  24. ^ Jack Moulton (March 9, 2016). "2016 Awards Profile: 'Passengers' from Morten Tyldum". Awards Circuit. Archived from the original on October 20, 2016. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  25. ^ Christopher Hooton (March 17, 2016). "Passengers: Following Gravity, Interstellar and The Martian, what you need to know about this year's big space movie". The Independent. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  26. ^ "Director James Gunn and Actor William H. Macy added to ATLFF lineup". CW69. April 6, 2016. Archived from the original on April 6, 2016. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  27. ^ Film Music Reporter (September 9, 2016). "Thomas Newman to Score Morten Tyldum's 'Passengers'". Film Music Reporter. Archived from the original on December 19, 2016. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  28. ^ Spaihts, Jon [@jonspaihts] (September 20, 2016). "I wrote #Passengers listening to Thomas Newman. Now he's scoring the film. Dream come true" (Tweet). Retrieved September 21, 2016 – via Twitter.
  29. ^ Mitchell, Bea (November 29, 2016). "Imagine Dragons are back with new track 'Levitate'". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on November 9, 2018. Retrieved December 7, 2016.
  30. ^ TAN, KENDRA. "G.E.M Is Now The First Female Mandopop Singer To Have 3 Music Videos With Over 100 Million Views On YouTube". TODAYonline. Archived from the original on June 23, 2020. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  31. ^ Orange, B. Alan (April 13, 2016). "Spider-Man & Ghostbusters Headline Sony CinemaCon 2016 Presentation". MovieWeb. Archived from the original on June 23, 2018. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  32. ^ Cavassuto, Maria (August 12, 2016). "'Passengers': First Photos of Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt Released". Variety. Archived from the original on June 23, 2018. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  33. ^ Kroll, Justin (August 5, 2015). "Sony Dates 16 Films Including Two More 'Bad Boys' Sequels, 'Jumanji' Remake". Variety. Archived from the original on September 21, 2015. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  34. ^ "Passengers Blu-ray Release Date, News & Reviews - Releases.com". www.releases.com. Archived from the original on April 4, 2017. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  35. ^ "Sony Releases 'Passengers: Awakening' VR Experience". www.vrscout.com. March 14, 2017. Archived from the original on April 15, 2017. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
  36. ^ a b Scott Mendelson (March 15, 2017). "Box Office: Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt's 'Passengers' Was One Of 2016's Bigger Original Grossers". Forbes. Archived from the original on March 15, 2017. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
  37. ^ "Will 'Rogue One' Vanquish The Christmas B.O. Competition?". Deadline Hollywood. December 13, 2016. Archived from the original on December 5, 2020. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
  38. ^ McClintock, Pamela (December 20, 2016). "Christmas Box-Office Crush: 'Sing,' 'Passengers,' 'Assassin's Creed' to Battle 'Rogue One'". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on December 21, 2016. Retrieved December 20, 2016.
  39. ^ "'Sing's' Box-Office Debut Tops 'Assassin's Creed,' 'Passengers' in Tuesday Night Previews". The Hollywood Reporter. December 21, 2016. Archived from the original on December 22, 2016. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
  40. ^ "With 'Rogue One' & 'Sing', It's A Two-Picture Christmas at the B.O." Deadline Hollywood. December 28, 2016. Archived from the original on June 16, 2018. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
  41. ^ a b "With 'Fences,' 'La La Land' Enter Top 10 As 'Rogue One' & 'Sing' Rule Holiday – Monday AM Update". Deadline Hollywood. December 28, 2016. Archived from the original on June 16, 2018. Retrieved April 17, 2020.
  42. ^ "Passengers (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango. Archived from the original on March 12, 2023. Retrieved April 22, 2023.
  43. ^ "Passengers Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on December 22, 2016. Retrieved December 23, 2016.
  44. ^ LaSalle, Mick. "Love in (or outside) the atmosphere in 'Passengers'". San Francisco Chronicle. Archived from the original on December 21, 2016. Retrieved December 20, 2016.
  45. ^ Dwyer, James. "Passengers Review". Empire. Archived from the original on December 22, 2016. Retrieved December 20, 2016.
  46. ^ Keough, Peter. "Passengers: They woke up 90 years too soon. Now what?". The Boston Globe. Archived from the original on April 16, 2017. Retrieved April 15, 2017.
  47. ^ Bradshaw, Peter. "Passengers review – Chris Pratt falls for Jennifer Lawrence in space". The Guardian. Archived from the original on December 31, 2016. Retrieved December 20, 2016.
  48. ^ "Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence's Passengers isn't a romance: it's a creepy ode to manipulation". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on January 12, 2022. Retrieved December 29, 2016.
  49. ^ Andrew Pulver (December 15, 2016). "Passengers review – spaceship romcom scuppered by cosmic creep". Guardian. Archived from the original on January 6, 2021. Retrieved December 15, 2016.
  50. ^ Wilkinson, Alissa. "Passengers is 3 movies in one, each creepier than the last". Vox. Archived from the original on December 30, 2016. Retrieved December 29, 2016.
  51. ^ Gay, Jason (August 9, 2017). "Jennifer Lawrence on Her New Movie, New Relationship, and How She Stays So Damn Relatable". Vogue. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved October 4, 2020. There was just stuff that I wished I'd looked into deeper before jumping on.
  52. ^ Buchanan, Kyle (November 2, 2022). "Who Is Jennifer Lawrence Now?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 2, 2022. Retrieved December 2, 2022. Adele told me not to do it! She was like, 'I feel like space movies are the new vampire movies.'
  53. ^ Lattanzio, Ryan (November 2, 2022). "Jennifer Lawrence Says Adele Told Her Not to Do 'Passengers': 'I Should Have Listened'". IndieWire. Archived from the original on November 2, 2022. Retrieved November 2, 2022.
  54. ^ Nordyke, Kimberly (January 24, 2017). "Oscars: 'La La Land' Ties Record With 14 Nominations". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 24, 2017.[dead link]
  55. ^ Hipes, Patrick (January 5, 2017). "Art Directors Guild Awards Nominations: 'Rogue One', 'Game Of Thrones' & More". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on January 6, 2017. Retrieved January 27, 2017.
  56. ^ Hipes, Patrick (June 7, 2017). "'Wonder Woman', 'Lego Batman' & Warner Bros Top Winners at Golden Trailer Awards". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on June 7, 2017. Retrieved June 23, 2018.
  57. ^ McNary, Dave (March 2, 2017). "Saturn Awards Nominations 2017: 'Rogue One,' 'Walking Dead' Lead". Variety. Archived from the original on March 3, 2017. Retrieved March 3, 2017.
edit