4 years after James Cameron’s Avatar, it’s the Mexican director Alfonso Cuaròn who brings us the newest visual revolution. With Gravity, 3D has never looked better (and I’m definitely not a fan of 3D). Ryan Stone is a medical engineer who works with Nasa. After an accident, her and another astronaut are trying to survive while drifting in space.
To be honest, I was expecting a little bit more here. We were promised the best film of the decade, and there’s nothing revolutionary about Gravity. Even if I found it very thrilling and amazingly done, It was a bit empty, just like a lot of the movies I’ve seen in the last part of 2013. The end alone made me want to bang my head against a wall. However, all is not lost, as the cast gives an incredible performance and visually, it’s a huge slap in the face.
Sandra Bullock carries the whole movie brilliantly, without overacting the part. You believe every single second of it, and her acting helps greatly in the realism of some scenes. You’re almost as panicked as she is in the first scene, and with the combination of music, heavy breathing, and the situation itself, this oppressive atmosphere makes you feel uneasy. In clear, it’s the perfect match for a space thriller. Even if Clooney’s character is a little bit useless, he brings a sense of calmness in the middle of the catastrophe, the ray of hope that at least one of them will eventually survive and come back to earth.
Technically speaking, it’s genius: the CGI is magnificent, each detail is cautiously studied, and with the sound, the emptiness and silence, you feel completely immersed. There is no escape in space, it’s like you are in a closed room, with no doors or windows, and where the walls are infinite. Cuaròn crafted his world in the most detailed way possible, and it’s a delight for the eyes! The opening shot, lasting 17 minutes, is breathtaking. He truly reached another level in cinema history on this point.
The story itself is empty, we only have a little background story for the character of Ryan but nothing consistent to hold on to. It’s also a bit predictable, you kind of know from the beginning that one way or another she will succeed in getting back to earth. It doesn’t spoil the story as we are too focused on her survival and the non-stop action isn’t allowing you to think about anything else.
However, like I said, the end bothered me a lot. The fact that after all she’s been through she can get up and walk towards the sunset, to me it felt ridiculous. It’s a lame end to what could have been a great film.
Gravity is, of course, a movie that everyone should see just for the beauty of the CGI, but personally, once is enough. They are most likely to receive the awards related to the visual effects at the Oscars and it will be well deserved!
Rating: 3/5
SHARE:
