Settlers is about a colony on Mars… cool… wait… they are breathing the atmosphere? And living in a lone settlement with only three people? What’s going on here? This seems impractical. Is this Mars or is it just Arizona with a fancy set (actually, having looked it up, it’s a desert in South Africa… but still). I began to wonder if this was just a Western with the fancy trapping of sci-fi… and if they’d conned me into renting it. But I think we eventually get enough detail and plot to eke out a justification.

So Settlers is, indeed, about a family of three living the frontier life on Mars (though I’m not sure if it’s ever called Mars…). It’s mom, dad, and a ten year old girl who they tell stories to about Earth (and how it’s not so good any more). But someone might be encroaching on their arid little oasis and soon this becomes a survival story.

This is a pretty slow movie with probably a fairly small budget but they make it work. Their set – while not huge or overly elaborate – looks good and their filming location is convincing enough (as far as breathable air and blue skies on Mars go). The acting is all pretty good. Sofia Boutella plays the mom with some fierceness and Brooklyn Prince (from The Florida Project) plays the little girl. Nell Tiger Free (from Game of Thrones) plays her a few years older. Both young actresses are very good though Brooklyn impresses the most.

That sci-fi nerd in me bristles at not getting enough description or explanation of the world. Apparently they’ve terraformed Mars but nobody ever says it outright. And their little frontier home has just three people in it which seems like a logistical problem. But I’ll credit the movie for apparently telling its story from the POV of the young girl who doesn’t know these details herself. That doesn’t necessary track though in first third because it’s not clear she’s the protagonist. But I decided I had to go with it or let my nitpicking demons ruin the movie.

Settlers more-or-less comes together and it’s not a bad watch if you have a lot of patience and don’t need your questions answered. There are some icky moments in a plot that never really seems to address the logistics of their survival… which bugged me too. So I come down more negative than positive but this is a pretty decent effort and the film has merit.

Score: 74