I doubt I’d be alone in describing the experience of discovering 2017’s Beyond Skyline. Skyline? That 2010 sci-fi movie with brain removals and blue-light vacuums, a movie so forgettably abysmal that the only thing one might remember is their desire to never watch it again? That got a sequel seven year later? Okay, I guess anything can get a sequel nowadays. But then came the word of mouth whispered among action fans. And then you watched the movie, realized you just saw Frank Grillo running from a giant space mech and the badasses from The Raid killing aliens with silat moves. Beyond Skyline was arguably one of the most impressive franchise comebacks in recent memory. That we’re talking about a third film – that this franchise even exists at all – is due to its joyously bonkers dumb-fun ambitions.
Following up such an unexpectedly great sequel would be no easy task. Three years later, without the element of out-of-nowhere surprise and without many of those bigger stars, can Skyline 3 (aka Skylines, or Skylin3s if you’re cool) capture lightning in its bio-mechanical bottle again?
Yes, it sure can.
Quick recap if you haven’t seen the other films: an alien armada attacked Earth, extracting brains to control their tech-organic soldiers. An abducted couple turned the tide, their daughter born as a human-alien hybrid with the ability to interface with alien machines and reverse soldier-drone brainwashing. Fast-forward fifteen years after Beyond’s finale, and that daughter is now Rose, played with laid-back cool by Lindsey Morgan (“The 100”). Mankind has recovered from that fateful attack, reverse-engineering alien technology into futuristic cities and an armada of our own. Remember Independence Day: Resurgence? It’s basically that, but…good.
Millions of human-brain soldiers (now known as “pilots”) live among society. Their humanity is restored but a plague sweeps their kind, threatening to revert every pilot to their savage-alien state. Mankind’s only hope lies on the invader’s homeworld and with Rose’s hybrid powers.
Skyline 3 walks a tonal tightrope of serious stakes for its characters and quippy rollicking adventure that never takes itself too seriously when it instead can show us a hijacked mech tentacle-swing onto an orbiting spaceship. The cast and the action embrace those schlocky charms, aiming for relentless sure-why-not fun throughout its two hours. Rose’s brother is a pilot that she ribs for not having opposable thumbs…sure, why not? The alien’s icy home-planet is the hunting ground of cloaked shadow hordes that fear light…sure, why not? Yayan Ruhian pops in for a few moments to rip out an alien’s throat Road House-style. Sure, why not?
Skyline 3’s spectacle can’t quite match its predecessor’s bizarrely awesome gift of martial arts versus aliens, but compensates with a boldly ambitious scope. From Rhonda Mitra facing an berserk alien siege back on Earth, to space fleet maneuvers in another galaxy, director Liam O’Donnell stretches his budget far beyond what one might expect from mid-tier VOD action while hiding the seams exceptionally well. A little Aliens, a little Pitch Black, a little superhero flavor and a dash of District 9: Skylin3s bombards the screen with set-pieces and battles defined by stylish clarity, CGI-enhanced kineticism, cool for the sake of cool. Impressive practical costumes blend with digital effects to grant the shootouts, fights and high-tech weaponry a sense of weight and tactile presence. By the final act, one can even add bruising hand-to-hand choreography and surprisingly satisfying gore to the cocktail.
The entire cast operates on a self-aware wavelength that keeps the spectacle breezy and light, providing laconic charisma to counteract a lack of characterization. Lindsey Morgan brings the same heart and cool tenacity that defined her role on “The 100”, clearly having a blast kicking alien ass with her extraterrestrial superpowers. Daniel Bernhardt – a familiar face for fans of John Wick, Matrix Reloaded and ‘90s action – plays his space-marine squad leader with granite intensity. Alexander Siddig glares and chews scenery as the general commanding the operation; even James Cosmo appears briefly to lend some gravitas. Skylin3s’ endearing space crew was a welcome palate cleanser after enduring Ju Jitsu’s personality-vacuum of a cast.
With Skyline 3, Liam O’Donnell cements his franchise as one of the most entertaining sci-fi action series to emerge in recent years. This is unabashed B movie fun with Hollywood blockbuster scope, the gold standard for what VOD spectacle can achieve, a sequel that embraces its gonzo charms and swings for the stars.
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