every once in a while you stumble across a movie that take you by surprise and this be one of them . on the surprise scale this would rate a share a hot tub with jessica alba whilst a band consist of elvis and jimi hendrix and john lennon and phil lynott and keith moon play you music for the night . the reason why this film will surprise you be that for the meagre budget they have ( £8 and 000 ) and that this be do by a bunch of mate who just want to try it out they have produce something very slick and look easily 100 time more than it budget . the plot be simple a crew of mercenary carry a dangerous prisoner through space come under attack and be force to crash land on a nearby desolate planet . after some check not only do the planet not exist accord to star chart but they be not alone a it seem and something very unfriendly begin to pick them of one by one . it sound like very standard sci fi fare mix element of alien . predator and pitch black but it take all these and make them into something that feel fresh and original . the location shoot in this be fantastic and utilising balmeddie beach in aberdeen to the maximum and you genuinely feel that you be one an alien world . the seemingly never end sand dune and clever lighting effect give it a very bleak feel and you truly think the crew be strand on an alien world . also the action sequence be superb and the opening assault on the freighter a great showcase of what special effect can be achieve on a budget and the firefights as well a the stunning finale all showcase the inventiveness of the film . a for the team of mercenary the cast excel themselves . for a low budget independent movie the casting here be do via local medium outlet and they seem to have pick some possible star for the future . local body builder mike mitchell whilst not a natural actor slot into his role a the arnie esq leader of the mercenary . from the rest of the cast there be two stand out performance patrick wright a second in command mcneal and scott ironside a the rough and ready engineer vince . both have some the best line in the movie and scott injects a good bit of humour into the movie with his performance . patrick give a well rounded performance a the cool a ice second in command . director mark stirton can be very proud of what he have achieve and show that scottish cinema need not all be kilt and ceilidh or slum and drug scottish film can be fresh and inventive and most of all a lot of god damn fun . this film be scottish ( with a north east flavour ) to the core and praise to the actor and director for keep the accent intact which add to the charm of the piece . although the budget limitation show from time to time ( the only fault i could find ) that be to be expect . this film and it cast and crew deserve all the success they get and then some more . i for one wish mark and his crew every success and theirs be a career to keep a very close eye on . rating positive the first scottish sci fi be bold and fresh and inventive a real triumph . movie review and news and opinion like no other plus the kick as bi weekly pod cast . www . fightrunner . co. uk contact @ fightrunner . co. uk .