Gravity is an extraordinary movie and arguably the year’s best film.
A visual and technical marvel and sensory tour de force, this new film written and directed by Mexican-born Alfonso Cuaron (Y Tu Mama Tambien, Children of Men) is a quantum leap forward from all previous space movies, undoubtedly raising the creative bar to unprecedented new heights — a few hundred miles above planet earth to be more precise. Future movies within this genre are likely to be compared against Gravity as a new benchmark, most unfortunately destined to crash land far short of their target.
Gravity’s intensity and realism are amplified immeasurably by the advantages of the medium of 3-D. If any movie utterly begs to be seen wearing the funny eyeglasses, it’s this one. And anyone who thinks they can simply wait for a film like this to be released on DVD or Netflix and be watched at home in their living room might as well take a pass altogether. That would be like going to the Grand Canyon and wearing a blindfold. You either pay a few extra bucks and see it the way it was meant to be sensed and savored or don’t even bother.
Indeed, rather than reducing this visual technology to a cheap parlor trick, as so many other fantasy movies have needlessly done in the past, Cuaron’s film manages to fully transform, engage, and integrate the viewing audience into the actual experience of space exploration. Watching this, we can now feel what it’s really like to float in outer space, the adrenalin rush heightened by what must be a constant fear of disaster.
Cuaron knows the movie camera and the art of cinema all too well and is the ideal director to bring such incredible imagery to the big screen. Recall his awe-inspiring work Children of Men, which utilized a number of dramatic scenes when the camera didn’t “blink.” In that grossly underrated futuristic film, Cuaron shot several complex action sequences that sometimes lasted seven or eight minutes long, requiring unimaginable precision and synchronicity from hundreds of actors and crew.
His work is equally impressive here, although undoubtedly aided by reel-to-reel special effects rather than casts of armies. Much of the time these kinds of gimmicks are a distraction, a sort of frosting with no cake attempting to mask the lack of a decent script or compelling characters. Indeed, most high-tech movie wizardry detracts from the human story, but that’s not the case here as the two familiar stars both give standout performances.
Sandra Bullock, known for a string of instantly-forgettable movies before her breakthrough Oscar-winning performance in The Blind Side, is perfectly cast in the role as a modern-day astronaut working bravely on the space shuttle. She gets considerably more on-screen time than her co-star, played by fellow Oscar winner George Clooney. Upstaging any Hollywood royalty is next to impossible, but it’s Bullock who successfully captures the audience’s empathy, playing totally opposite the witty and charismatic hero we’ve become accustomed to identifying in Clooney as an actor.
In fact, Gravity may have the smallest cast size ever for what could be the next “Best Picture” winner. It’s Bullock, Clooney, and only one other actor onscreen for the entire film. We also hear the instantly recognizable voice of Ed Harris, reprising his previous role as NASA’s Director of Mission Control in Houston, ala Apollo 13.
The plot is relatively simple and not necessary to know much about before entering the theater. Needless to say, what should be a routine space mission goes terribly wrong and we witness what unfolds over the next 90 minutes, pretty much in real-time.
If this sounds familiar, it is. This same story has been done before, most notably in the way ahead of its time 1969 thriller Marooned, which was the fictional story of three astronauts who get cut off from earth due to a technical malfunction and become hopelessly stranded in outer space. Of course, Apollo 13 also touched on this theme, albeit with a happier ending.
But nothing before it has captured the extraordinary ecstasy and fear (read that again — ecstasy and fear) of swimming in space, one microchip fizzle away from death. And that’s where Gravity exceeds beyond any film that’s been done before.
There are a few standout scenes, one of which can be revealed here. Early in the film, there’s a scene that focuses largely on Sandra Bullock’s facial expressions as she’s thrust into the abyss, potentially lost forever to a slow death, her oxygen running out one breath at a time wandering outwardly and aimlessly towards the stars. We see fear and the onset of justifiable hysteria mixed with a methodical focus that’s her only ticket to survival. The camera moves in closer, and closer still, as Bullock’s space shield becomes fogged with the warmth of her own breath. The terror in her eyes is suddenly transformed into steely determination, encouraged by c0-traveler Clooney’s voice and depth of experience. During the indelible moments of that psychological abyss, knowing that death has become a very real prospect, Bullock draws us into her spacesuit and manages to keep us zipped up tightly for the entire film’s duration.
Without posting any spoilers, the film does occasionally stretch scientific accuracy, at times. But these are dramatic effects that can be forgiven. It’s far more important to keep what we’re watching within the proper context.
Such context comes in the opening graphic, which reminds us — temperatures in outer space range from -180 F to 245 F (depending on the proximity of the sun to the earth). Furthermore, there is no sound in outer space, since there are no sound waves. Try and remember that as you watch the astronauts performing tasks that might seem routine on earth, but are minor miracles when suspended 370 miles above the earth where oxygen does not exist and the human body is an inch from complete incineration.
Alas, what makes Gravity so captivating are these finest of details. The same magnificent view from high above which takes our breath away also may end up costing us our last breath. And yet, strangely enough, it all seems worth it.
This is a must-see film.
A final note: I’d be remiss were I not to also acknowledge the brilliant film score by Steven Price. This music is as powerful as anything written and composed by John Williams, the gold standard when it comes to movie instrumentation.
Here’s the official movie trailer for Gravity:
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