Film Review: ASH (2025): Eiza González Carries an Ambitious and Creative Science Fiction Thriller Towards Success
Ash Review
Ash (2025) Film Review, a movie directed by Flying Lotus, written by Jonni Remmler and starring Eiza González, Aaron Paul, Iko Uwais, Kate Elliott, Beulah Koale, Flying Lotus and Andrew B. Miller.
Director Flying Lotus brings the eerie, creepy and definitely satisfying science fiction film, Ash, to the screen with terrifying complexity as the movie unveils layers of its leading character, Riya (Eiza González)’s personality until it finally moves forward at warp speed about halfway through with gory situations and intense action that will keep the audience hooked. Imagine Ridley Scott’s Alien if it were a psychological thriller instead of a horror movie then you’ll get an idea of what Ash is like.
Eiza González delivers and then some with a terrific performance as Riya, a woman on another planet who seems to have lost her memory of recent events. Other crew members who were colleagues of hers seem to have died. One of the living ones is Brion (a solid turn by Aaron Paul), but this movie doesn’t simplify any of the complexities its story revolves around. Instead, it is a character study integrated into a slimy gore fest with a creature that will, without a doubt, get under your skin, quite literally I might add.
Ash centers on the mystery of what happened, but never lets the audience in on its secrets until viewers are completely invested in Riya as a character. Riya fights for survival, but she’s an enigma who certainly has a thing or two that she’s completely forgotten about. The interaction here between Brion and Riya starts off slow-moving, but soon the picture’s character development helps develop the plot significantly. An icky alien-type being pops up that gets inside its hosts and acts terrifyingly freaky in its new bodies which complicates Riya’s fight for survival. However, what if Riya was the one who was responsible for what has occurred regarding the deaths of her co-workers in some odd way?
Though Ash has a lot of lighting details that highlight its intensity, the script is pretty good by its own measures. Eiza González was born to play this role, but don’t confuse it with the character of Ripley from the Alien films. That’s because Riya is a lot more disturbing to watch as she tries to piece together the details of that which seems to have escaped her mind. Her friends include alien bait, Kevin (Beulah Koale) and Clarke (Kate Elliiott) who may seem less dead than some of the others, but oxygen is running out quickly and all lives could be at stake, including Riya’s as the plot progresses.
What makes Ash a winner is Flying Lotus’s uncertain approach to the material. Riya is an unreliable narrator and the complexity of the character keeps the action moving towards its rather twisty conclusion where Riya could just become her own worst enemy. Perhaps, she’s the only one who could possibly escape death, but the intriguing Brion could give her a run for her money if he turns out to get the upper hand. Unfortunately, the one who gets control of the ship is not the most stable person in the film since the creature inhabits certain characters’ bodies and makes them do things that are disturbing to watch, but have these events really happened or are they a figment of our leading lady’s character’s imagination?
Ash never stops for air. While Riya fights for survival, doors in the story line open up that reveal what, exactly, could be going on in reality. This movie is like a haunted house and a roller coaster in one as it recalls spooky science fiction films like 1997’s underrated Event Horizon. There’s no turning back as Riya searches for the answers she so desperately seeks out.
Make no mistake. Eiza González is a “real deal” movie star. She may seem too glamorous for the part at first, but still. She’s wickedly fine as she must cope with something going on around her eye that could be the key to understanding the plot and its twisted revelations which will intrigue hardcore science fiction fans as well as the typical thrill-seekers who like their movies full of complexity, but not complicated enough to substitute their thrills for too many unnecessary character motivation revelations.
Ash gets to offer the best of both worlds as the crew doing research becomes consumed by their ambitions resulting in some frightening scenes which will make other recent science fiction thrillers pale in comparison. If Eiza González wasn’t a true leading lady then the movie could have self-destructed. Instead, the movie carries us along with her character’s curiosity so well that the viewer will understand Riya’s quest for the truth whether they truly get to like her or not. No one can hear you scream in space, but what if one is screaming within oneself and can’t hear what’s trying to be said because the truth is scarier than anything that was ever imagined? Ash will scare you and make you think simultaneously making it recommended viewing.
Rating: 7.5/10
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