Skylines
review by Bobby Blakey
Back in 2010 the alien invasion flick Skyline was unleashed in theaters to mixed results. Despite some issues, I still actually enjoyed the flick and had heard they were planning more films, but it looked as that was never going to happen. In 2017 the sequel Beyond Skyline finally hit with a different tone but tons of action. Now a third chapter in this universe, Skylin3s is here starring Lindsey Morgan, Jonathan Howard, Rhona Mitra, James Cosmo, Alexander Siddig, Daniel Bernhardt, and Cha-Lee Yoon with Beyond Skyline director Liam O'Donnell returning to the director’s chair.
Skylin3s follows a virus that threatens to turn earth-dwelling friendly alien hybrids against humans and Captain Rose Corley must lead a team of elite soldiers on a mission to the alien’s world in order to save what's left of humanity. I was a big fan of the original film and had always hoped for more from the way it ended. The second film changed the tone but was a fun action flick complete with the additions of Iko Uwais and Yayan Ruhian from the Raid films and I was all in. I never heard much after that and then out of nowhere this third chapter was unleashed, but has big shoes to fill with the first two.
While it might not hit as strong as the first two films I still had a fun time with this latest flick. This franchise has done what Independence Day had hoped and elevated each film to where they are finally off world this time around in a full on space action film. It’s bigger in a lot of ways in both its scope and aspirations and for the most part works most of the time. This story picks up years after Beyond Skyline following the now grown daughter of Mark played by Frank Grillo. This makes for a simple direction to continue the fight for Earth while still feeling like something new.
I was happy to see that once again they bring in a martial arts actor in Daniel Bernhardt who most may know from his roles in John Wick and the Matrix films,
but I am a fan all the way back to Bloodsport 2 and 3. He appears in a lot of films these days and often times his martial arts skills are not utilized, but I was so happy to see that he is on full display getting to kick ass and moments to shine. This continues the action heavy direction from the previous films and even brings back someone from the previous film in a small role to my excitement.
Martials arts aspects aside it is also a solid sci-fi flick that pushes the boundaries to deliver something bigger and better. Not all the effects worked as great as others but the inventiveness and overall look of it all works. I applaud the filmmakers for sticking to mostly practical effects and costumes as it does so much more to make it work and use the CGI for more enhancement. Sure there is a ton of other CGI work, but it didn’t just feel like one big cheap green screen like a lot of these movies do these days.
The story is a bit clunky and predictable at times, but as a whole I had fun and that is all I hoped for with this film. If you enjoyed the first two films then jump in and get in on the fun of this latest and hopefully not final chapter of the Skyline franchise when it hits theaters and On Demand on December 18th from Vertical Entertainment.