A24 has unveiled the first trailer for High Life. Robert Pattinson may have started out his career as the dude from Twilight, but he's since gone on to become a truly terrific actor in his own right who is constantly making interesting choices that seem to be motivated creatively, as opposed to for financial gain. In this case, he's taking part in a sci-fi/thriller that sees him raising a daughter all alone in space in a less than ideal and very tense situation.
We start off with some footage of Robert Pattinson raising his baby daughter in what looks like a rather normal day to day fatherly scenario, save for the fact that he's doing so in space. It's mostly atmospheric, with strange and alluring shots of unwitting astronauts aboard this vessel, seemingly at odds with one another. As things progress, the tension rises and something is clearly not as it should be. Though, the trailer does a good job of keeping that a secret. There are certainly some 2001: A Space Odyssey vibes here, but with a little twist of horror.
In High Life, Monte and his baby daughter are the final survivors of a doomed and treacherous mission to the far reaches of our solar system. The crew, comprised of various criminals who were on death-row back on Earth, led by a doctor with sinister motives, have disappeared. As the mystery of what happened onboard the vessel begins to unfold, this father and daughter will need to rely on one another to survive as they find themselves hurtling toward certain destruction.
The cast also includes Andre Benjamin, aka Andre 3000 (Jimi: All is by My Side), Mia Goth (A Cure for Wellness), Lars Eidinger (Clouds of Sils Maria), Agata Buzek (The Reverse), Ewan Mitchell (The Last Kingdom), Jessie Ross (The Frankenstein Chronicles), Claire Tran (Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets) and Oscar-winner Juliette Binoche (The English Patient). The movie comes from Claire Denis, who is one of the more established female directors in the business. Denis is known for her movies such as Chocolat, 35 Shots of Rum and Nenette and Boni. Denis serves as both writer and director this time around.
High Life debuted at last year's Toronto International Film Festival. Critics who have screened it thus far have generally been rather kind to it, as the movie boasts a very solid 85 percent approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with 41 reviews counted. A24 has a tremendous track record in recent years, having produced such hits as Ex Machina, Hereditary, Eighth Grade, Lady Bird and the Best Picture winner Moonlight, just to name a few. Will this be another solid entry to their catalog? We'll know soon enough, as High Life is set to arrive in theaters on April 12. Be sure to check out the new trailer from the A24 YouTube channel below.