Life begins with a discovery that scientists have dreamed about for generations. A probe returns samples from Mars, and the crew aboard the International Space Station finds a living organism inside them. They name it Calvin. At first, the discovery looks like a miracle. By the end, it becomes a threat that may reach every person on Earth.
Jake Gyllenhaal plays Dr. David Jordan, a medical officer aboard the station. Rebecca Ferguson plays Dr. Miranda North, the crew’s quarantine specialist. Their mission is to study the organism and keep it contained. The trouble begins when Calvin grows much faster than expected. It learns, adapts and becomes strong enough to attack the astronauts.
The final sequence starts after most of the crew have died. David and Miranda understand that the station is falling into a dangerous orbit. If Calvin reaches Earth, it could survive and spread. They decide to use two escape pods. David will lure Calvin into one and pilot it away from Earth, while Miranda takes the other pod back to warn people.
David’s plan initially appears to work. He uses oxygen sticks as bait and gets Calvin inside his pod. He launches, while Miranda begins her own escape. The audience sees the two pods separate, but the damaged station and flying debris have changed their paths. The plan is no longer under their control.
The film cuts between the escape pods, making it difficult to know which one is heading toward Earth. David struggles to steer his craft away from the planet. Calvin wraps itself around him and interferes with his attempt to control the pod. Miranda’s navigation system also fails, sending her farther into space instead of toward a safe landing.
Then comes the film’s cruel twist. A pod crashes into the water near a fishing village in Vietnam. Local fishermen see it and move closer. The audience first has to understand that this is not Miranda’s pod. It is David’s. He is still alive, but Calvin has covered much of the pod’s interior and is wrapped around him.
David screams at the fishermen not to open the hatch. They cannot understand his warning, and the people on nearby boats come closer. The final moments leave the audience with the terrible possibility that Calvin is about to escape onto Earth. Miranda, meanwhile, is lost in deep space.
Daniel Espinosa directed Life, which was released in 2017. The screenplay came from Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick, the writers later known for the Deadpool films. The cast also includes Ryan Reynolds as engineer Rory Adams, Hiroyuki Sanada as Sho Murakami and Ariyon Bakare as Hugh Derry.
The ending works because it turns a rescue into a disaster without needing a huge final battle. David makes the hardest choice available, but one damaged escape route ruins the plan. The film also avoids giving viewers the comfort of a confirmed rescue or a neat explanation of what happens next.
Life leaves one final question hanging: did the fishermen just open the door to a new alien outbreak?
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