GRAVITY (2013)
When I saw Alfonso Cuaron's latest film, "Gravity", immediately after the screening it had dawned on me that those of us who had seen the film (it opened on Friday, October 4th) had witnessed history. Just as audiences were blown away by the special effects in "The Wizard of Oz"back in 1939, I was amazed sitting in my seat of the TCL Chinese Theater (aka Grauman's Chinese Theater) last night realizing that we were experience a very similar thing. We were witnessing a new frontier in the world of filmmaking. "Gravity" is visually stunning, beautifully shot, incredibly acted, and technically amazing. It's the best movie of the year and one of the most frightening experiences I've ever had in a theater.
The film's story is basically this: George Clooney and Sandra Bullock play astronauts Matt Kowalski and Dr. Ryan Stone, respectively. They are part of the crew of the space shuttle Explorer on a mission to run maintenance on the Hubble Space Telescope. Kowalski is the witty, smooth talking, and seasoned veteran-spaceman on the final mission of his career. Stone is the very serious mission specialist (a person assigned to a very specific aspect of a space mission) who is reserved, shy, and silent. They are in the middle of a space walk on the telescope when they receive word from Mission Control ("Houston, we have a problem"- Ed Harris once again provides the voice of Mission Control as he did in "Apollo 13") that a Russian missile has destroyed a satellite that triggered a chain reaction that destroyed other satellites. The explosion snowballed, taking other satellites down and creating a wave of space debris moving faster than a bullet, hurtling right at them.
When they are stricken by the cloud, it leaves the shuttle destroyed, the telescope ripped apart, and Kowalski and Stone drifting off into space and the only survivors of the disaster. The sequence in which they are stricken by the could was extremely effective in terms of scare work. The only thing we hear are Stone's terrified cries and Kowalski telling her that she needs to get a grip on a possible visual so that he can find her and stop her from floating into the abyss of space.
The space shuttle Explorer is destroyed in a terrifying action sequence from Alfonso Cuaron's "Gravity"
The score by Steven Price (whose music we also heard in "The World's End" in August) greatly heightened the drama. It is very minimilistic but it is effective. The score features one cue in particular that will be remembered after watching the film. It is a loud, booming barrage of sound that gives us, right off the bat (it plays at the very beginning of the film), that creates fear, danger, and desensitizes the audience to the sound we will experience later, and just as we are getting ready for the resolve... It's taken away. Brilliant.
Now, I must say, I saw this in IMAX 3D (on the 3rd largest screen in North America) and sat in a spot where I lucky enough to be close enough to the screen so that it filled my entire field of view. Seeing the film in this way was extremely nauseating and amazing. It was like I was actually spinning with Bullock immediately following the bombardment by the debris cloud. The urgency in her voice and Clooney's, along with the spinning camera movements, score, and the screen/3D combo freaked me out to the point of feeling myself getting worked up. The movie is extremely intense.
When Stone is finally re-captured by Kowalski, they come to discover Explorer entirely destroyed and unable to make re-entry to Earth's atmosphere. Their only hope is to make it to The International Space Station, which has appeared in view (just in the nick of time!). Kowalksi uses the propulsion pack he was testing out on his suit to push them in the right direction. Because of the lack of gravity and the vacuum of space, if they are not sent in the right direction, they will simply float off into space, with nothing being able to stop them. Their only chance of survival is to get to the ISS escape pods and use them to re-enter the Earth's atmosphere.
It is during this scene that we begin to learn the story behind Bullock's character. She has experienced a death in her family that has left her shaken. Kowalski asked why she was always so reserved and passive and he has to dig very deep to get an answer to so much as where is she from. Cuaron's dialogue never felt forced, cliched, or over-done to me. The actor's deliver was so great, they they were still themselves. Sandra Bullock really deserves an Academy Award nomination for her work in this film. She portrays Ryan as a woman who is carrying one demon on her back, and it ways tons. It keeps her from living her life.
Sandra Bullock and George Clooney working on the Hubble Space Telescope in a scene from "Gravity"
The story is very much about moving forward and putting the past behind you. Now, in the face of death, Stone must become more strong than she has before and continue to think on her feet (does that saying apply in space?) to find a way back on to the ground. Inside the ISS are beautiful shots of Bullock curled up into a ball, leading me to my next point: we are witnessing Dr. Ryan Stone being re-born. But will she survive or will she be stillborn?
To me the most amazing aspect of the film was the horizon of a lot of the shots. Cuaron would move move the horizon around so much it was the point of disorientation. As they traveled through space, our only sense of where the characters were was the very edge of the Earth. The first half hour left me feeling dizzy, which I'd never experienced before from a film where the camera was pretty stationary. Also, the 3D effects where amazing. Alfonso Cuaron made the 3D effects part of the experience of watching the film. It made the weightless-ness of space seem that much more real. I think if I would have seen this in a standard screening, I wouldn't have been as taken by the film.
The most touching scene in the movie though is when Stone realizes she's going to die and the only thing to comfort her is an AM radio transmission from a man speaking an unknown dialect and she's hearing some dogs barking and howling. Following that, we hear the sounds of a baby crying (see what I mean about being re-born?) which make her remember her family. The scene is so beautiful and held together so tightly by Sandra Bullock that it's heartbreaking.
Now, many of those who know me are familiar with the fact that I hate 3D. It's stupid, It's poorly done 98% of the time and of course, it is expensive to go see a movie that adds and extra dimension. But let me say this, if you can, go see "Gravity" on the biggest screen you can find and SEE IT IN 3D. The film had me asking "how did they do that?" the entire way through. George Clooney and Sandra Bullock are perfectly cast. It is a technical masterpiece and the best movie I've seen this year. If you ever dreamed of space flight, this movie will make you think twice. And if you've ever wanted to become a filmmaker, or just appreciated film, it will inspire you. Alfonso Cuaron's "Gravity" gives new meaning to the "Alien"'s now infamous tagline:
In space, no one can hear you scream.
10/10
- Directed by Alfonso Cuaron
- Written by Alfonso Cuaron & Jonas Cuaron
- Runtime - 90 minutes
- Suggested viewing: IMAX 3D
- 8.8 of 10 stars on IMDb
- 98% on Rotten Tomatoes
LINKS
Below are pics of the IMAX screen that Gravity was screened on at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood and the actual costumes from the film that were on display in the lobby at the cinema:
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