Netflix’s next big sci-fi show is set in a retirement community

Forty years later, ’80s science fiction continues to dominate today’s movies and TV shows. The idea of ​​a group of kids coming together to face the threat of another country has become a hot topic right now, which is seen in everything from. Winner 8 to Strange Things. So at one level, GovernmentsThe new sci-fi series on Netflix, does a lot of what it sounds like, with its tale of a mysterious alien who threatens a small town and a group of friends who band together to stop it. But Governments he also does something different: His neighborhood is a retirement community, and his group of friends are all in their 70s. Governments above many of his Spielberg-imitating brothers.

Governments is the title of the show, but it’s the name of a beautiful retirement community in the New Mexico desert where, almost immediately, it becomes clear that something is wrong. Things are small too perfect. Crotchety newcomer Sam (Alfred Molina) realizes this early on, but it takes him a while to figure out what’s going on. There are highlights, such as a resident who complains about owls in the walls, but things start when Sam accidentally captures a strange creature that appears to be eating his neighbors while they sleep. This discovery drags him and his newly formed team into a massive conspiracy.

Governments it does a good job of explaining its mystery, which gradually develops over its eight episodes. I won’t spoil anything, but there is a direct connection between the stranger and many strange things that are happening around the community, which only makes knowing what is happening – and, of course, preventing it – very difficult. In Amblin’s classic film from 1985, this is the point in the story when a group of kids on bikes gets confused in the plot and realizes things. But since we are in the retirement age, this group is very old fashioned.

Sam is the central character, a father who feels lost and confused following the sudden death of his wife and moving to a new place. But he is supported by his neighbors. There’s the ever-happy Jack (Bill Pullman), who earns Sam’s friendship by not taking no for an answer; retired reporter Judy (Alfre Woodard) and her husband Art (Clarke Peters), who just want to ride and play golf; Renee (Geena Davis), a former executive in the music industry; and Wally (Denis O’Hare), a doctor who had a tragic history of losing loved ones.

There are many about Governments which are common and predictable. You can imagine how things are going during the season when Art stumbles upon a peach tree with seemingly magical properties. There are plot twists lifted from the movies that inspired the show, such as Sam making strange fighting weapons from old TV shows. But there’s a fun twist on familiar things that come from characters and characters. In the end, the story is so strange and confusing that it is impossible for any of the group to explain, because everyone who listens thinks they are confused.

Above all, the show is driven by the cast. I enjoyed the mystery – even if the final revelation was a bit off – but more than that I enjoyed hanging out with these old adults (sounds clear, I appreciate it). Looking Governmentsyou can’t help but want to drink with the handsome Jack, or light up the lobby with Art. Watching Alfre Woodard whip out a gun with murderous intent, or hearing Geena Davis say that she wants to “stack some bodies,” is so much fun. Everyone on the team has their own charm – it’s great to see Sam opening up to his new family – and skills that just make them the perfect team to tackle the dangers of space.

The likability of the cast makes it easy to overlook the show’s flaws, like the fact that this seems like a standalone story, and one that, at eight episodes, doesn’t go overboard. And while it reminds us of a lot of the past, luckily it doesn’t rely on desire alone, standing on its own as a great sci-fi mystery. Governments it feels like an ’80s movie that probably could have been better at 90 minutes, but I’m not worried that I have more time to spend with these people.

_{Governments streaming on Netflix now.}