Gravity
Gravity is a movie that needs to just be seen to get why everyone is talking about it so much. It is a completely visual movie. So much of it is shown without dialogue and based purely on the emotions of Sandra Bullock’s Dr. Ryan Stone as she floats through space, scared and alone. The story is simple. Ryan (Bullock) is a medical engineer on her first space shuttle mission aboard the Space Shuttle Explorer. She is accompanied by veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski (Clooney), who is commanding his final expedition. During a spacewalk to service the Hubble Space Telescope, Mission Control in Houston warns the team about a Russian missile strike on a defunct satellite, which has caused a chain reaction forming a cloud of space debris. Mission Control orders that the mission be aborted, and the shuttle begin reentry immediately. They scramble to get back but soon the cloud of high-speed debris strikes the Explorer and Hubble, and detaches Stone, leaving her tumbling through space. She manages to control her tumble and Kowalski soon comes to save her and using Kowalski’s sweet jetpack, they make their way back to the Space Shuttle. When they find it, the Shuttle has suffered catastrophic damage and the crew is dead. They use the thruster pack to make their way to the International Space Station (ISS), which is in orbit only about 900 miles away. Kowalski estimates they have 90 minutes before the debris field completes an orbit and threatens them again. So that is the setup. That is the objective of the film. Find a way to get back to Earth or get real comfortable with no air, a cold death and a pile of junk hurtling towards you.
Like most space movies, there is a constant barrage of problems that seem to only go wrong when someone is filming a movie in space. Could all of these things actually happen in space during a crisis? Maybe. I think when you go to the movies you have to give up on trying to find scientific certainty from the fiction. Just roll with it. I think the reason I liked Gravity (which is so much of a visual movie) was how Alfonso Cuaron told a story of a woman who was so damaged by life that she didn’t care if she lived or died is reborn through adversity. There are plenty of moments when you can see the literal transition from Ryan floating in the fetal position to her final moments in the film. There is little surprise in the story and doesn’t really go beyond the basic story elements of a space movie. All you need to know is that when you see this typical story, there is a different feel to the film. It has a fresh feel and tells you a story you’ve heard before in a new way.
Like most space movies, there is a constant barrage of problems that seem to only go wrong when someone is filming a movie in space. Could all of these things actually happen in space during a crisis? Maybe. I think when you go to the movies you have to give up on trying to find scientific certainty from the fiction. Just roll with it. I think the reason I liked Gravity (which is so much of a visual movie) was how Alfonso Cuaron told a story of a woman who was so damaged by life that she didn’t care if she lived or died is reborn through adversity. There are plenty of moments when you can see the literal transition from Ryan floating in the fetal position to her final moments in the film. There is little surprise in the story and doesn’t really go beyond the basic story elements of a space movie. All you need to know is that when you see this typical story, there is a different feel to the film. It has a fresh feel and tells you a story you’ve heard before in a new way.
Sandra Bullock recently has either become a much better actress or is figuring out her wheelhouse a little better. Either way she has transformed in my eye. I used to look at her movies with a slightly disgusted and annoyed eye. Now I look at them with a slight nod and my hand held out with the agreed upon amount of money in it. The same can be said of George Clooney. I find him smug and arrogant. Sure if I had the life he had I might be arrogant and a little smug. There is a part of me that just hates him for having the gravy train with biscuit wheels that he has. Again seeing his movies are an eventuality to me rather than a pain in my ass. I can’t root for him but I will support his work on film. I feel slightly dirty saying that but it is true. Gravity is not a groundbreaking story but it does have a groundbreaking visual element that makes it worth the price of admission alone. I saw it in 3D and I enjoyed it. I don’t think (as I’ve said before) that it is necessary to enjoy the movie. Overall...
Mr. Unhappy Sez: It is a great motion picture. I am not sure if it is the Best Picture but you certainly won’t feel bad after seeing it. Enjoy yourself. See this movie and have a good time. Also, fuck space. Fuck it in it’s black dark hole...
No comments:
Post a Comment