3.5 stars out of 5
Haven’t been to the movies in a freakishly long time, so I was glad that Gravity was still playing at my local cineplex after a month and a half. (Most movies, hit or not, seem to disappear from the theaters after a couple of weeks these days.) Further delaying me was the fact that I’d read somewhere that I “absolutely had to see Gravity in IMAX.” Gave it some thought, but after that Elysium debacle, the next movie I have to see in IMAX—and have to cross the river, take a subway, and pay a five-dollar surcharge—will likely involve some Wookies.
And then also kind of holding me back: Sandra Bullock. Now, I love love love me some George Clooney. Admitted Cloonophile. But Bullock… ehhhh. Back in the ’90s, I drank the Kool-Aid: Speed, While You Were Sleeping, Speed 2: Electric Boogaloo. Even stuck around for 28 Days. But I just couldn’t do it anymore. My impression was that she dependably delivered OK performances, one after another, in churned-out Hollywood pap.
But, this had Clooney. And is directed by Alfonso Cuarón, who made that pretty great Children of Men, and also one of the Harry Potter movies, which I have to admit have all kind of blended in my head. And also, people kept saying it was super-cool. So, I went.
I liked it!
Now, I didn’t read all those “this is revolutionary filmmaking” articles and “movies will never be the same again” stories. But I can now say: The only way that Gravity will change the way movies are made is if every movie from now on is about people floating in space. (Hope Floats 2: Hope Is Actually Floating)
Still, it’s, not to overuse the word “cool,” but—it’s cool. You’re basically floating in space with them. I paid two bucks extra for 3-D (my IMAX compromise) and, you know, nice sense of depth, and then at some point a bunch of space junk comes at you. But really, it’s not that kind of 3-D movie.
Another thing I really liked: You know how every once in a while, there are these movies that you think are going to be all claustrophobic? Like, Tom Hanks and that volleyball or James Franco stuck in that rock? (Wait, was that one 28 Days? Or 28 Days Later?) Except, when you actually see them, there’s always a lot of introductory stuff—hanging out in the FedEx warehouse, or mountain-biking in the desert—and then they’re always cutting back to the worried supervisors back at the base. Well, this one stays blissfully claustrophobic for its nearly-real-time 91 minutes. It’s just Bullock, Clooney, and space, baby. Planet Earth is blue and there’s nothing I can do.
If you have to be stranded in space, there are worse people to have with you than George Clooney. And “veteran astronaut” is the sort of role he can play while he is sleeping (eh? eh?): tough but sensitive, weary but hopeful, chummy but wise. He gets to make a couple of inside jokes about how damn handsome he is. And that comforting beer-commercial voice sounds even better coming through a spacesuit radio.
And then there’s Bullock. I have to say, she does a real nice job. Believable as the antsy space rookie. And then it’s her story, which becomes our story: If thrown into an incredibly difficult situation, what would you do? Whatever you had to, basically. And hopefully just enough to get by.
For a long while I thought this was a great movie. Then it had a little stupid patch, but rebounded nicely. Overall, highly watchable, and kudos to Bullock, who shows some real chops, and looks great doing it. Still not gonna see Miss Congeniality 3 however.
Had a great experience at the movies this week. They couldn’t get the film to work! I’m sure you, Jack, maybe Fred Pruitt and others have had this experience. It’s the best. Though in the olden days when the film would blowup/melt on the screen, that was really cool. Anyway, a great community of 50 or so of us movie goers. We heckled, we laughed, the little girl in front me wore a Steeler Rothlisberger uniform shirt, so me and her chatted a bit. My bro-in law played tunes on his smartphone. Hung around satisfyingly for about 45 minutes. And then I sort of went out of character as we left causwe while we getting our free ticket, I sort of bullocked, I mean bullied the theater worker into giving us all an extra ticket. Twas a good night. Will have to hold off another year to see if I can have the same sort of movie malfunction bliss.
Well played, yjdtym! The last time that happened to me it was frustrating because even I got the free ticket, the movie I was watching disappeared from that theater. But they wouldn’t just restart it that day as they couldn’t throw off the rest of the schedule.
I think the last time that happened to me, was the film blowup/melt scenario, not sure, may have been hartley’s Trust, but I’m going with Korine’s Gummo, cause I remember it more, cause after the meltdown I was able to go back and see it, thus Half of it twice. You know how when you saw Slacker when it came out, you were, “fuckin A I live in that world! Well Gummo 7, 8 years later, I was like, “fuck, I am in those person’s lives!”