Space sweepers is a 2021 Korean science-fiction action movie that I would say is well worth the watch. Given that there are several things I want to discuss in this article, I will quite surly make several spoilers, so be fairly warned.
First thing’s first, in my opinion Korean movies should be given closer attention since recently they are making a good job in the cinema industry, and it shows. This is not just correlated to the recent acknowledgment for Parasite, but also for other even older movies (one example would be their adaptation of Old Boy). In the case of Space sweepers, I do not know if the actors are famous, but what it is easily recognizable is that quite some care has been put in the making.
The premise and the world
In the year 2092 Earth is on the brink of destruction; forests have vanished and deserts have spread, the air is unbreathable and gas masks must be worn at all times. The technological advancements have enabled people to travel to space and build floating domes or earth-like habitats for the selected few (which just so happens to be the rich).
The world building is very interesting: although there are certain things that might seem a little exaggerated, it still presents a balanced approach to the scientific part. They use a space elevator to get to space, something that is a real conceptual theory for future space travel.
In this movies UTS is the organization who seemingly saved part of the population, building the space domes and now colonizing Mars (rendering the atmosphere liveable and earth-like). Sullivan, the leader of this group, is actually (as expected) the mastermind behind a plan to destroy the part of Earth that is on life-support to rebuild a home on Mars for the small percentage of people he deems worthy. He points his finger against human beings for their crimes against humanity; there is much hypocrisy in his attitude.
The (anti)heroes
The cast of protagonists is made up by a crew of sympathetic misfits. While it is fairly evident that each of them has their own agenda and would cheat each other over at the first occasion, they have a lovingly chaotic way of working together. They are all poor and in deep debt so they are forced to scavenge space debris to make end’s meat.
Tae-Ho is the pilot and he is very good at what he does; consumed by guilt, he is searching for his daughter that is floating in space. UTS could find her before she drifts too far, but this would entail a huge sum of money.
Captain Jang is a strong character, ruthless and feisty. It is one of those cases that the female character doesn’t seemed forced within the plot whatsoever; she fits perfectly with the story. As a side note, she wears a pair of ray-ban because the rule of cool must be respected.
Speaking of the rule of cool, Bubs is an android who throws harpoons in space (Moby Dick is outdated at this point). She wants to be ‘more human’ implanting a skin graft and a voice modulator.
Finally, Tiger Park is the mechanic of the ship; he works on scorching machinery like in a furnace, sweat glistening on his tattoos and from his dread locks. He also wields an axe, and that is enough of a description.
They all have a back-story, slightly requiring some empathy on behalf of the viewer, that slowly throughout the movie is revealed. Tae-Ho was a child soldier, a brilliant pilot and the inaugural commander of the Space Guard until he understood the implications of his actions and was unable to kill again; the daughter he is searching for is actually the adopted child whose parents he had killed. Tiger Park was the leader of a drug cartel, but he used his money to help kids. Captain Jang is ex-UTS and a genius engineer; at the age of nineteen she deserted to form a pirate organization with anti-UTS ideology and attempted to assassinate Sullivan.
Themes: an ecological and post-human discourse
One clear aspect the movie portrays is the divide between rich and poor; Earth becomes a symbol for the large percentage of people that still live in horrible conditions whereas the futuristic cities represent the luxury and comfort of the ‘one-percent’ and of corporate greed. In fact, for the larger part of the population everything becomes debt. This criticism goes even beyond when considering how the resources of Earth were used and what became of the planet. “The earth was still breathing, but it was on life support” – this quote still gives a hint of hope, but it also is a call for awareness and action.
One question that is asked by one of the protagonists is Do you think poverty makes us bad or that we’re poor because we’re bad? This would open a series of philosophical and ethical questions that would not be suited for this article nor would I have the capabilities to tackle them. It is however an interesting point to mention.
Ethnical diversity is represented as less of an issue in this dystopian future: there is a cast of secondary characters all of different nationalities, each speaking their own language. Through an instant translator that functions as a babelfish (Hitchhiker’s guide to the Galaxy), the linguistic and ethnical barrier seems to disappear almost completely.
Many are the ecological problems that this movie depicts, especially considering the dying Earth and dynamics of human hypocrisy correlated with the rule of self-preservation on behalf of the rich population. Furthermore, just as many authors inferred in recent years through literature, there is the theme of trash and waste material. There is a scene where a waste managing satellite is shown and the sheer proportions are enough to make it seem like an entire planet.
From a post-human point of view there is the question of the half-android half-human girl the crew finds and that will trigger the entirety of the plot. In this case, there is a fusion between human and machine, a new form of being that is capable of bringing back life on Earth through the interaction of the nanobots with nature. This may be the depiction of a further stage in human evolution; on the other hand it may even be the representation of the only means that is capable to save humanity from itself. There is the suggestion of a fusion between human and machine that infers the necessity to work side-by-side with nature.
One last theme that I would like to take into consideration is that of space debris: the crew makes money by “cleaning up” the pieces of wreckage that float through space. Furthermore float is not the appropriate word considering that in space, since there is no force of attrition, objects gather a higher velocity once an external force is applied and if they interact with gravitational forces. This is also a light motif for other recent works, especially in Japanese manga and anime (Planetes and Mgnetic Rose are clear examples).
Final thoughts
Considering everything that has been just said, I would argue that the movie is solid, especially upon pondering the important issues it tries to rise. There are still moments when the cartoonish music, occasional stereotypes and the classical ‘heroes must win’ ending spoil part of the immersive experience, but the movie is still very enjoyable.
I would give this movie a solid 7 out of 10 krypton waves.