Quartile rating: 6/10 · 1 rating
Tensions flare in the near future aboard the International Space Station as a conflict breaks out on Earth. U.S. and Russian astronauts receive orders from the ground: take control of the station by any means necessary.
I.S.S. is a contained, competent sci-fi thriller that uses the ISS setting effectively to explore Cold War-style paranoia in microgravity. The premise is genuinely interesting — mirroring geopolitical collapse in the claustrophobic confines of a space station — and the cast (Ariana DeBose, Chris Messina) delivers solid, believable performances under pressure. The cinematography captures zero-gravity tension reasonably well, though it rarely transcends functional genre work. Where the film disappoints most is its ending, which feels abrupt and unsatisfying, leaving thematic threads dangling rather than resolving them with the weight the setup deserves. The concept is fresher than most thrillers but not radically singular — it echoes Cold War paranoia films in a new environment without fully exploiting its unique setting's dramatic potential.