Light

Sci-fi on the cheap, but not by turning it into a near-future story. The trick is that we're spending time on a very misty planet, so there are never any big alien vistas that require extensive CG. It's a small and condensed genre film, banking on its less-is-more approach, and doing a pretty good job at it.

Some astronauts crashland on an unknown planet. They are unsure what happened to them, but their first priority is trying to survive. They quickly realize that they're not alone on the planet and that their lights are attacking the local wildlife. But these local creatures aren't all they need to worry about.

The setup is extremely minimal, but director Woollard makes excellent use of the situation to build up the tension. The sci-fi elements look the part, the danger that lurks in the mist is effective, and the score adds plenty to the atmosphere. I think Woollard could've pushed things even further, but it's one of the better core sci-fi efforts I've seen in some time.