The consensus of the universe is that Direct-To-DVD movies are terrible. Can the same be said for the Netflix Original films? The Titan, starring Avatar’s Sam Worthington as Lieutenant Rick Janssen, is an anomaly in the movie world for an infant’s handful of reasons. Truly showcasing Netflix as a dominating force in the market along with other premiere streaming companies, this direct to Netflix film gives viewers an opportunity to see a film without any prior expectations. Movie critics will hate this, but the viewers may find a reason to enjoy. The Titan focuses on a selection of highly proficient people who are being trained and frankly, tested, to adapt to life on the Moon through a process known as “forced evolution.” The idea that forcing someone to stay underwater for extremely long will eventually force their body to adapt. Lung expansion, retaining oxygen longer……. Maybe growing gills? Yeah…

Our star Worthington and his wife Dr. Abigail Janssen (Taylor Schilling of Orange Is The New Black) is the focal point as they adjust their life to the changes coming to Rick. This couple put on a good performance, and the acting quality is definitely not one of the weaknesses of The Titan. Sitting to watch this movie, I thought that the concept was interesting, and I had predetermined that the concept was interesting enough for me to watch. This is convenient because I’m not entirely sure I would pay $15 to watch this in the movie theater, based on the trailer alone. The luxury of an interesting concept, and not having to pay for a movie ticket, is going to benefit Netflix’s direct films. Being able to watch this without any outside influences from critics completely changed what I thought of the movie. In the future, Netflix is going to release more Netflix Original movies that are not the same quality as feature films. But, in the comfort of your home for what feels like free, it definitely does the trick. Netflix and viewers will benefit from this for a long time. While Titan isn’t perfect by any stretch, it accomplishes something for sure. Titan makes me trust that I can watch other Netflix Original Films that I may not be sure about, as long as the concept is my cup of tea.

Now in the largest chunk of the movie, as you can expect, Rick goes through changes, and as you can also expect, all of these changes do not go over smoothly. Turmoil within the group’s subjects differ but follow the common theme of them all being under immense stress, physically and mentally, and that is exactly the point. The antagonist, who is not very antagonizing, is there to push our volunteers to the brink and force them to become “Titans”. The problems the group faces are perhaps the most interesting part of the story. Obviously, the intention was to make them stronger and more adaptive, but what kind of things might actually happen when you pump a human full of animal DNA and flip their environment upside down? These questions are what kept me watching. Titan felt like a Sci-Fi TV movie that I was ashamed to be enjoying a ton (ie: Waterworld, for me).

Almost teasing you with potential, the final concept never quite springs to life and lives up the high potential that it actually had, but the lack of predetermination makes it okay. The Titan is something you expect to just be below average and when it’s actually average, it’s kind of satisfying. The least satisfying part is the ending, which comes way too fast. Not saying that the movie should have been longer, but definitely saying that the last 10 minutes can show you a human who transforms *seemingly* overnight into something totally different altogether. The interesting concept is both the bait and the badness here, as The Titan tries to sneak experiments in place of a well-told story. Ripe with government conspiracy, some family drama, and medical exaggeration, the Titan has its flaws but delivers for what it is supposed to be.

OUR SCORE: 5.5 – Mediocre

Kevin Williams

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