What just happened are we in space…
Gravity
In theaters Oct 4, 2013
Starring: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney
Directed by Alfonso Cuarón
A story about Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) and Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) surviving the depths of space where no one can help you. Slowly looking for the next possible solution to safety. Slowly drifting in space after an unfortunate accident.
Gravity is one of those films that is really hard to write about. I have no idea on where to begin. There are so many great things about this film that we can discuss. And yet I sit here pondering what to write about. Let me begin by saying that Alfonso Cuarón is a fantastic director. Ever since I saw Children of Men I went back and saw all of his films. His style in film making is one of a kind and it shows. Mr. Cuarón tends to use long takes a lot and Gravity is no exception. If the tech doesn’t exist for the shot he wants he will fund it and invent it. With that being said Gravity is such a mind blowing experience.
Let me repeat myself, Gravity is an experience. What does this mean? Well I am not sure how to explain this because everyone will experience something different while watching this film. However what I can tell you is that you must watch this in IMAX 3D. There is absolutely no other way to watch this film. I hate to say this but I really do mean it. I feel that when this film is released on DVD/Blu-ray it just won’t be the same. Here is why.
Sound Design! The film takes place in space. And as we all know there is no sound in space and no one can hear you scream. So what do we have to listen to? a beautiful soundtrack and magnificent ominous sounds that always have you at the edge of your seat. Because we are in space there are no explosion or crashes. So most of the time we hear the radio chatters of the astronauts and their breathing while satellites and explosions are happening in the background. Have you ever wanted to be an astronaut well Mr. Cuarón does a fantastic job and places you inside a suit where you can hear constant echoes of Sandra bullocks struggling to stay alive, while constantly being placed in danger. Anything bad that can happen to Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) does happen. At times it is so silent in the theaters that it sometimes feels awkward when you can hear your neighbors heavy breathing or slowly trying to take a sip of there soda, making as little noise as possible. This is what I mean by experience you get so immersed in the film that you sometimes find yourself lost in space, literally. So how does Mr. Cuarón accomplish this? After the film ended I came up with a theory on what allowed for this film experience of being lost in space. Like I mentioned before the Sound design and soundtrack are amazing and flows perfectly with the film. But at the beginning of the film there is a loud screech that seriously disrupts your train of thought and knocks you into a annoyed state of mind. It caught me off guard and was like “that was F-ing loud, What the hell was that?” And after complete silence. We are in space and it so…visually striking!
Space the final frontier. It is beautiful! Earlier I mentioned that there was no other way of seeing Gravity than in IMAX 3D. The reason is because the screen is so massive that you can see everything. Every star is so bright that it lights up the whole theater. I live in Los Angeles and I rarely get to see stars so this was a huge relief to see them. It really felt like you where there. I refuse to believe that Alfonso Cuarón did not film this in space and frankly i don’t think i wan to know how he filmed it. well maybe I do… But the 3D and IMAX experience add so much more to the film specially in the scenes where the debris of satellites are flying everywhere. The 3D effect puts you right in front of the action. I know it can be a cheesy effect where things come flying at you, but it is so much more. It adds to the whole experience of being stuck in space and having limited amount of possible things to do to survive. At times all you see is stars on screen like you are staring into the abyss and in the far distance you can see a white suit coming closer and closer. It’s hard to explain. But Mr. Cuarón is known for his long shots. While watching this film I probably counted less than 100 cuts in the whole entire film, don’t quote me on that. However the opening scene is the best one of them all. Coming in at about 17 minutes is one of his longest single shots in the film. The camera travels back and fourth between the outer space and close up shots of the actors. This shot is magnificent and sets up the wild ride that you will experience the rest of the film. Look out for this shot and try to find where the first cut of the film is, it’s a long one.
The last thing I should mention before wrapping up is the story and acting of the film. In the bare bones of it there is not much to the story. It is a simple survival story that takes place in space. You have Ryan stone (Sandra Bullock) and Matt Kowalski played by George Clooney. Even though the story doesn’t have much depth it is replaced by an amazing performance by Sandra Bullock. When you are lost in space trying to survive there is not much you can show on screen as far as scenery. However Sandra bullock does an amazing job playing the role of a scientist trying to survive her first mission on space. There are some really good scenes where Sandra Bullock brings some very emotional and tense moments hoping that someone will come to her rescue in space. Her acting really shines when combined with 3D effect particularly when she cries and her tears become part of the scene, slowly floating towards the specs in your 3D glasses. In the end, even though it is a story we have seen before the visual effects and sound design is what really brings the film together.
Gravity is a fantastic film that will keep you engaged and mesmerized with its stunning visual effects. As I mentioned before this film is an experience and everyone will experience something different. Hopefully you will feel the same way I did when watching this film. It was truly a film of epic proportions and all good things come to an end. Remember that abrupt sound that catches you off guard. Let that sound return at the end of the film and snap you back into reality. Back from your voyages of being lost in space. Telling the people you know of your story, experience, while watching Gravity.
Gravity – 9 out of 10
Let us know what you thought of the film. We look forward to hearing your thoughts…