Click here to listen to the interview with director/co-writer Mel Eslyn.
At the beginning of BIOSPHERE, the world as we know it has ended, leaving only two human beings left alive. They are Billy (Mark Duplass) and Ray (Sterling K. Brown), and they have gone from being the apex species on the planet to finding themselves at the mercy of nature. In particular, at the mercy of the self-sustaining environment, the titular shelter, designed by Ray, who in the previous world was the science advisor to Ray during his 14 months as president. We’re not told exactly how long they have been in the dome, though the canned soup is getting low, nor are we told exactly how Billy ruined the world. That’s not the point of this pointed examination of the patriarchy’s worst-case scenario.
We are told, however, about the demise of last female fish in the pond on which the dome depends to keep Billy and Ray alive. We are also told about the unresolved issues between these two life-long friends, and, eventually, why the phrase “bowling ball” is such a loaded one for Billy. The real story here is what happens when nature takes charge of these two, disregarding humankind’s scientific achievements and its former glory as the creatures running the planet. There’s something puckish about how firmly nature takes the upper hand, giving no quarter, and essentially turning them into her bitch with a twist that leaves no doubt about who has the last word.
Duplass, a rumpled man-child, and Brown, a self-assured brainiac, are delightful and poignant as they banter their way through the apocalypse, only to come up short when nature makes her ci-mentioned move and we watch them process the changes imposed on them by it, and the way it affects how they relate to one another. They make Billy and Ray flawed but endearing, provoking empathy and genuine affection as they bravely bumble through. Thus, are we gently seduced, invested in their story as dominance, gender, politics, friendship, intimacy, and their differing approaches to looming catastrophe are sharply delineated by co-writers Duplass and director Mel Eslyn. The use of disarmingly casual conversation and a camera that allows for silences as they, and we, ponder what is unfolding in this stark space that looks out on a world that is dead black provides the perfect stage on which plays out their intellectual and emotional journey. Going from the assumed arrogance about their perceived former place in the natural world to the realization that they have no more control over their situation, or even their bodies, than the fish that keep them alive becomes a piquant exposé of how fragile humankind’s position has always been, even without a president of dubious qualifications to strike the final blow.
Challenging, entertaining, fiendishly provocative, and just absurd enough to make the end of the world fun, BIOSPHERE is a surprisingly light-hearted dramedy that asks two tough questions. Do we as a species deserve another chance and is there always room for hope no matter how bleak the prospects? As with the best speculative fiction films, those answers depend much on your own perspective, one that might change over the course of the film thanks to the film’s measured optimism, an optimism all the more infectious for being so very counter-intuitive.
Your Thoughts?