A good movie that isn't two-and-a-half
freakin' hours long? Yes please! Gravity is to space thrillers as
Scarface is to crime dramas. It makes Apollo 18 look like a hunk of
space garbage (which it is).
Gravity's story is simple, but
engaging. It involves the crew of space shuttle mission STS-157
repairing space telescopes in the Earth's orbit. Unfortunately, they
soon find themselves bombarded by debris from the destruction of an
old Russian satellite, which destroys their space shuttle. Matt
Kowalski and Ryan Stone are the only survivors – as well as the
movie's only characters – and must find a way to safely make it
back to Earth. We also get to see Stone re-evaluate her current
outlook on life. Sandra Bullock plays Ryan Stone, a nervous and
withdrawn, yet quick-thinking engineer on her first mission. George
Clooney plays Matt Kowalski, a calm and brave veteran astronaut who's
equipped with a thruster pack. Both of their performances are
excellent. The viewer can really see what's going on inside Stone's
head and can sympathize with her easily.
But where Gravity truly shines is in
its cinematography. Without hesitation I can say that this is one of
the best-looking movies I've ever seen. Most of the film consists of
long, uninterrupted shots that really give the viewer the feeling of
isolation in the vastness of space; the opening shot is held
continuously for about eight to ten minutes straight. And when the
movie wants the viewer to get the same claustrophobic feeling that
the astronauts feel, it gives us point-of-view shots from inside
their helmets or a wide angle shot of the cramped insides of an
abandoned spacecraft. Combine all of this with the amazing special
effects and you've got a gorgeous picture that's really a treat to
see in 3-D.
The score is also very effective at
building tension. It's very atmospheric and sounds very modern and
alien: kind of like The Social Network, but on drugs. I like it.
The movie tries going for a very
realistic approach in portraying what a zero gravity vacuum
environment is like. The only thing that kind of bothered me was how
simple it seems for Stone and Kowalski to spacewalk between space
stations. It only takes them a few minutes to leapfrog between
installations. Are they really that close in real life?
Whatever. Gravity is still a wonder of
space cinema. It has great acting, effects, music, and camerawork.
It's the best movie I've seen so far this year. If you're the least
bit interested, then go watch it. And make sure it's in 3-D.
Rating: five stars out of five!
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