Movies like this one which are essentially stageplays won't please the crowd looking for spectacular CGI and action sequences. I liked it because the story was mostly logical and credible. CGI was adequate and cutaways to exterior ship views were done appropriately. Some of the acting isn't going to win any Oscars, but it's generally adequate.

Most of us are blissfully ignorant of, or have forgotten the nuclear Damoclean threat which has lain dormant for 73 years, but who knows, 2065 might be the year...

The movie is not without faults: A serious flaw was how the probe was unable to detect an atmosphere full of methane and nitrogen. That could have been detected spectroscopically from orbit, no need even for a probe. Then of course they would not have bothered wasting their precious fuel landing there and picked the other world instead, which turned out to be like Eden. "Hull fractures" which appear at very inconvenient times seem difficult to understand.

Also I didn't understand was why Gerry went berserk and became murderous, especially when one death was explained by the Chinese psycho lurking in the Pegasus. While getting stabbed in the torso by a 4 cm scalpel blade would not be pleasant, I doubt if would really stop a healthy opponent from pulling away and fleeing or fighting back.

If you like sci-fi, you may well like this one.

After a Thermonuclear War Humanity's last hope is for a small crew of a Spacecraft, the Pegasus, not made for Long Term, Long Range Space Flight to find a habitable World. As basically a One Way Trip (Do or Die). Many other Spacecraft like the Pegasus were also launched, like the Utah, and failed. An encoded message from the Utah was received by the Captain of the Pegasus from the Utah, before the Utah was lost.

The small crew, barely enough, to keep the Scout Ship running, with anti matter nearly gone.

After 7 years of being confined to the Spacecraft and near their destination, encounter a Chinese Spacecraft of the same PT 32 design. They decide to board the Chinese Spacecraft with the intent of obtaining the Chinese Anti Matter, Medical Supplies, Chinese Ship's Computer Data, after the Chinese Spacecraft fails to respond to signals from the Pegasus.

A lone survivor is found on the Chinese Dragon Spacecraft, a young Chinese Boy, that was not murdered by one of the Insane Chinese Crew Members then jettisoned into Space like the other Crew Members. The Chinese Dragon Spacecraft does not have Anti Matter, the Escape Pod is missing.

Something happens and the Pegasus' Engineer, Pete, gets trapped on the Chinese Dragon Spacecraft that is going critical, members of the crew of the Pegasus say goodbye to Pete. The Chinese Dragon Spacecraft then goes critical and explodes.

The Crew of the Pegasus continue their Mission.

A probe is launched from the Pegasus to determine if their Mission Targeted Planet is Habitable.

Data from the Chinese Dragon Spacecraft indicates that the Chinese found Two Possibly Habitable Worlds after launching Two Probes. As "Two Rolls of the Dice" instead of one.

The decision is made and the Pegasus, lands. The Planet is not habitable. The Pegasus is damaged and uses more Anti Matter on take off.

Enroute to the Second possible Habitable Planet crew member, Blake, while at the Pegasus' Bridge gets his throat cut. Most think that the Chinese Boy murdered Blake, as the same Hatred and Mistrust that caused the Thermonuclear War.

Somebody is sabotaging the Pegasus from Engineering.

The Captain finds a panel open after finding that the Chinese Boy is still restrained. The Captain repairs the cut wiring, the Internal Sensors are restored and from the Bridge, the Computer indicates that there are Two Survivors from the Chinese Dragon Spacecraft.

The Chinese Man as the Second Survivor struggling with the Captain is then shot and killed.

There is the plot twist, as even after the Chinese Man was shot and killed, more of the Crew are Murdered.

Crew member Jerry has a disease and will soon die and has gone crazy and is killing the other Crew members. Mike figures this out and is murdered by Jerry. Jerry takes Haley hostage and goes to the Bridge and murdered the Pegasus' Pilot Jane.

The Captain decides to put young child Lila and the young Chinese child into the Pegasus Escape Pod and launch to the second possible Habitable Planet. The probe is seen by the Chinese Captain of the Dragon Spacecraft from the Habitable Planet, possibly the father of the Chinese Boy.

The Captain goes to the Bridge and fights with Jerry, shooting and killing Jerry. The Pegasus is out of Anti Matter. Nearly out of power the Captain and Haley decide to launch a communications probe to tell the Fleet about the Habitable Planet they found.

The Pegasus is seen burning up in the atmosphere from the Habitable Planet by the Chinese Captain, the Chinese Boy, and Lila.

This movie is NOT a bang bang shoot em up, explosions every couple of minutes, with extraordinary unbelievable Heroes, but accurately depicts the long 7 year one way trip, boredom, monotony everyday, psychological stress of years of confinement, possible problems that the Actual First Inter Planetary (Inter Galactic) Space Explorers will Encounter, as Serious Actual Science Fiction (that may turn into Science Fact someday),instead of Entertainment for those with Attention Deficit Disorder, that must have violence, sex, explosions, aliens, monsters, lasers shooting, immense battles, chase scenes occurring every few minutes.

Before getting insulted and demanding this Review be Censored the History of Attention Deficit Disorder, is simple, the Diagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder did not exist before the Pharmaceutical Corporations started giving Doctors (Psychiatrists)"Incentives" to Prescribe their Products as Free All Expenses Paid Vacations, Money (Bribes),New Cars, New Boats, other Free Expensive Drugs, even Prostitutes (according to investigative News Journalists),these Attention Deficit Disorder Drugs would addict children for the rest of the Lives making the Pharmaceuticals Corporations Hundreds of $Billions A Year.

First to say, this is not a new 'Sunshine' (2007),nor 'Pandorum' (2009) . If you want one of those, you have to look elsewhere.

The basic story is quite similar though - a spaceship, here not so big, and with only a few people on board, searching for the last resort of mankind , while earth herself is nearly destroyed. The main difference to 'Sunshine' and 'Pandorum' is the amount of bloodshed, and also the budget, which was approx. a tenth of each of the former's.

It may be true that the first 40 minutes are a bit hard to overcome for the average sf-action lover. There we learn to know the crew, which is a bit of a family since they are now together for seven years, as we are told. The movie takes it's time to establish a certain mood of day-life, instead of bringing up severe conflicts or delusions and problems immediately. That's OK, if you ask me, I do sometimes like a more lifelike approach. And who, when not astronauts, should be able to live through such a long journey ?

When the ship encounters the derelict ship, as described in the story-line, the movie gains momentum as it should, and it doesn't lose it until the end, providing enough tension and action for a rainy evening in front of the flat-screen. Acting is solid, directing and special effects are OK for a Direct-to-Video or Video-On-Demand production (which I assume it is).

As the budget may dictate, 'The last scout' cannot claim to be special or outstanding, like said examples, and it doesn't want to. Instead, it tells its story, and this is where it looses some stars, the story ingredients are too much copied from those other movies, minus a certain amount of their violence, to be suitable for families, I think. It would have taken only a bit of time to form a more creative and interesting solution within the premises, at least avoiding said big models. So, for the SF veteran, the outcome and the explanations toward the end are a bit disappointing.

I can give the movie yet 6/10, as 5 would be too low in my eyes.