Tropic (2022)
Written by Maurico Carrasco, Edouard Salier, Thibault Vanhulle
Directed by Edouard Salier
Review by: Mark Walker
In France, two trained astronaut twins go through a lot when one of them is contaminated with a mysterious residue from space.
Làzaro (Pablo Cobo) and Tristan (Louis Peres) are gifted brothers, pushing themselves to their limits as they try to win one of three places on a European Mission into space that could very well save the future of humanity. Tristan is the star pupil, determined to help his brother through all the necessary tests to explore space together.

A late-night training session in a lake as Tristan coaches Làzaro to hold his breath for longer ends in disaster as falling debris from space contaminates the water and leaves Tristan hideously disfigured, mentally impaired and unable to continue in the space programme.
Can Làzaro continue against all the odds to win a place for himself, or will his “survivor” guilt prevent him from breaking the brother’s promise to go into space together or not at all?

First off, Tropic is not really a horror. Although there are horrific elements to Tristan’s injuries, there are no real “horror” scenes that you might expect from a film with a premise that involves contamination from space debris! It may not even really be an out and out sci-fi. Again, there are sci-fi elements as the brothers are training for a critical space mission. However, Tropic is more of an exploration of the love and relationship between two brothers, the effects of jealousy on people’s actions, and a consideration of how disability impacts both those affected by it and their friends and families.
It definitely has a sci-fi background, but that doesn’t define the movie. The story would work in many settings, and the Sci-Fi background adds a layer of “difference” to the set-up and makes for a more interesting take on a familiar story. Tropic is a slow-burn, and the sci-fi and space programme elements take a back seat to the social elements of this family drama.
To this end, Làzaro is hit almost as hard as Tristan is by his accident. Tristan’s struggles against his physical and mental changes are reflected by Làzaro’s struggles to continue in the training programme. While supporting both his brother and his mother. It is a difficult time for him, and he struggles with both; his grades slip as he is in danger of flunking out of the programme.

The focus is very much on the brothers, as it should be. However, there is a limited exploration of the event’s impact on their friends and family. The brother’s mother is caught up in the middle of things. But we don’t see much about the impact on her. A potentially complex relationship between the brother and another cadet, Louis (Marvin Dubart) is squandered. Seemingly only there to serve as a catalyst for a later, pivotal scene.
Tropic scratches the surface of the relationships around the brothers while not quite getting as stuck into their relationship. As I would have liked. Despite being a slow-burner, I was never bored or found it dragged. I was invested in the relationship between Làzaro and Tristan right up to the emotional and primarily satisfying conclusion.

Tropic is well shot, and all the performances are impressive. It’s a powerful tale of love, competition and jealousy. It didn’t quite elevate itself into greatness for me. But it equally didn’t do anything that would make me suggest you shouldn’t watch it! If you fancy a bit of thought-provoking, drama-led sci-fi, then Tropic is definitely worth a look. Sadly, you will be disappointed if you are after space virus metamorphosis and monsters.
Blue Finch Film Releasing presents Tropic on digital platforms 4 March
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