You almost had three major sci-fi movies to choose from in December, but STX was wise to move The Space Between Us out of the way of Rogue One and Passengers. It almost certainly would have been lost in the shuffle, however now the teen romance has plenty of room to win over audiences with its story of literal star-crossed lovers.
Starring Asa Butterfield of Enders Game and Britt Robertson of Tomorrowland, the film is sort of like The Martian for the YA set. Butterfield plays the first human born on Mars, which makes traveling to Earth to meet the girl he's been chatting with online kind of a risky prospect. He does it anyway, of course.
There's some strong veteran talent surrounding the youngsters here, too. Gary Oldman and Carla Gugino co-star as the adults trying to keep everything PG, while the film boasts a script by Allan Loeb and direction by Peter Chelsom, whose Hector and the Search for Happiness carried a similar uplifting, globe-trotting tone.
I had the chance to see this film just days before it got bumped, and think it's a little more bittersweet than the trailers have suggested. Worth checking out if you're looking for a date night movie on February 3rd when it opens.
