I’ve been a fan of James Badge Dale ever since HBO’s The Pacific as well as the criminally cancelled slow-burn espionage thriller series Rubicon (six years later and I’m still bitter, damn it!) so I tend to pay attention to just about everything the perennial scene stealer does. But somehow Spectral flew in under my fanboy radar, and I have no idea how.
The directing debut of Nic Mathieu, this upcoming feature was originally supposed to be released theatrically by Universal Pictures, only for them to abandon the project along Netflix to swoop in and save the day as they’ve been doing with increased frequency later. And Spectral is a good acquisition for the media streaming service, as it helps to increase their repertoire when it comes to genre films. And it doesn’t get more “genre” than this: A dystopian sci-fi military ghost thriller. Yes, all those words do actually belong next to each other in that order.
And if the appeal of Dale, alongside that particular niche genre was not enough to get you intrigued, the Netflix production also stars fan-favourite veterans Emily Mortimer, Max Martini and Bruce Greenwood. To add to all that talent, the film’s script also boasts the writing skills of George Nolfi (Salt, The Adjustment Bureau), John Gatins (Real Steel, Kong: Skull Island), and Jamie Moss (Street King). And it actually looks pretty cool, with some top notch visual effects and surprisingly interesting narrative hook.
But don’t take my word for it. Check out the first trailer below, which was released over the weekend.
Spectral will drop on Netflix this coming Friday, December 9, 2016.
Last Updated: December 5, 2016
Andre116
December 5, 2016 at 13:08
First thought that wen’t through my head when I saw the trailer was the Final Fantasy film of some years back.
Captain JJ
December 5, 2016 at 16:40
So many great things on Netflix these days. Have to check this one out.