It’s been a phenomenon for years when a top box office draw finds themselves at a certain point in their careers where they begin making low budget film after low budget film, released mostly to video or cable. It seems as though Bruce Willis has adopted this style of performance with his recent films. His newest release, Cosmic Sin, has the formula the be something fun but fails on nearly every level.
In 2524, humans are able to colonize space. When two outpost guards are attacked by aliens, the military on Earth will have to spring into action to learn more about them. General Eron Ryle (Frank Grillo) has to assemble a team in order to assess the oncoming threat. He calls upon a disgraced general James Ford (Bruce Willis) to help. Things quickly escalate and the newly assembled team will have to travel to space to stop the aliens before they destroy the planet.
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Cosmic Sin is plagued with issues. You know you’re in trouble when the worst performance in the movie comes from Bruce Willis. He’s expressionless for ninety-percent of the film. It’s aggravating because we all know how great he can be. His most recent pictures could be so much more fun if he would just accept and embrace his films. Instead, he delivers the clichéd dialogue as if he were reading directly from the page. The rest of the cast truly tried to make the nonsensical story feel more believable and give it some sort of substance. Adelaide Kane, Lochlyn Munro, Costas Mandylor, and C.J. Perry all have memorable moments. The biggest disappointment for me was the lack of Frank Grillo. I honestly thought it would be Bruce Willis who only shows up for a couple of minutes then disappear, but it was Grillo, who, in my opinion, is one of the greatest performers working in genre films today (check out Boss Level or Beyond Skyline).
Being a sci-fi film, if it has any chance at all in succeeding, would be to have passable special effects. Well, Cosmic Sin features some really impressive effects work. I was actually taken aback by just how good they are. When I say effects, I’m referring to the look, the space setting, the ships, etc. but not the aliens, as their design left much to be desired. Aside from a few inspired moments, you can only stomach clichéd dialogue like, “I’m a doctor, not a god” for so long. Maybe you can find something to enjoy in the film, but for me Cosmic Sin is a cosmic disaster. Directed by Edward Drake.
Cosmic Sin is now available in theaters, On Demand, and on Digital via Saban Films.
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