Gravity

Two films in two days, how crazy is that? They each couldn't be further from one another, this is a big Hollywood, huge budget, high concept, top drawer actors, amazing film. Most importantly it has a much shorter running time than my previous cinematic endeavour, this is too it's credit and a little bit worrisome.

My immediate reaction to Gravity was the fact that the first act of the film is mind-blowing, then it seems to change gears and move on to a still extraordinary film but the set up didn't quite match the pay off. That's just how I feel about it I guess. Don't get me wrong, stylistically it's a beautiful film to watch, the visual flourishes and space-scapes are just amazing, heart in your mouth gorgeous, especially in 3D. But you really can't top the opening sequence of the space craft introducing the astronauts, and then the onslaught of debris smashing everything to kingdom come, then the time spent with Sandra Bullock character as she composes herself from the disaster. It's just a great sequence of events and shot beautifully and I felt genuinely nauseous being spun around in space.

The two core players in the film were George Clooney and Sandra Bullock, the shiniest stars in the sky bobbing about showing us their skill. I doubt I will ever be lost in space, but godamn if I was lost in space with anyone on earth, I would want to be lost in space with George Clooney. Clearly his character has been specifically designed to be a confident affable presence to the less sociable 'deeper' Sandra Bullock, the stoic female with a chip on her shoulder. It's a role that George Clooney is pretty much ideal to play, he's sassy, has a story for every occasion and makes a supreme effort to distract us from impending doom, which is great because we need Clooney to lighten the mood. Sure Clooney is good in some roles, i.e. the stoic cool guy role, but here he works just great and provides some light relief from the terror. We also have Sandra Bullock, we gradually strip down her character to her undies floating around in space, to her core, the film tries to make some effort to make her personal journey touching and revealing and we learn about her as we follow her through her ordeal. I'm not sure if it's her lack of oxygen but she does act quite insane during several moments, barking at some chinese guy over the radio, turning off the oxygen and deciding to pack in all together, she even goes as far as hallucinating, then talking to unseen dead people and referencing the afterlife and prayer, it's all very worrisome at some points but it moves the story along and obviously gives us a point of entry to empathise and understand her as a person. It could have worked but hey, I wasn't feeling it, needless to say Sandra Bullock will most definitely receive an Oscar nomination for her work in the film because it's great, what she does, I wasn't especially blown away by her performance but I can understand that what she did was great and deserves recognition. If that makes sense... plus I love Clooney, he's a great dude in general, I do believe his talent doesn't specifically lie in acting as such but everything else he does always interests me greatly.

Gravity as a whole, a great film. It evoked Space Odyssey 2001, and there was a distinct feel of when FFVIII tried to evoke that same sensation by needlessly setting a chunk of the game in space just so we could to into space and roam around in space suits because there is something about space that really tugs at the imagination in a unique way. Most importantly there is a scene where you just see a suit floating away endlessly in space and I recalled 'losing Rinoa in space forever.' and bellowing at my television screen with rage and fury. I was eleven years old and I couldn't get her to float into my damn arms...

In space, no one can hear you scream! (According to the Alien by-line) And there's much to be afraid of, up there in the big black emptiness with Earth serenely turning below... There's the soundlessness, the fear of dying in space is quite horrifying one, alone, no one to find you, take you home, remember you, be there for you, it's all a very frightening prospect and Gravity does a great job of conveying this. But, as with most Hollywood films, there comes a point where a protagonist can only defy death so many times until it becomes more irritating and than thrilling, if I assume I were a trained cosmonaut, I know I would have died several times... It just sours the whole experience when you're thrown into peril and know you're going to survive. And hell surviving against all odds is a hell of a story to tell, as Bullock states, but it's also incredibly predictable... Did I want everyone to die? No, not really... It wouldn't have been a good film if we weren't faced with endless obstacles to overcome... I guess it's just not my kind of film. I went in with low expectations, I came out with those expectations met, it was a gorgeous film and the set up was great, the last hour was just good. I know it'll be a well talked about film for years to come and Alfonso Cuaron is one hell of a director, so there you have it!