A marvel of cinema

Rating: 9/10 (26 November 2013)

Now, I'm not one to be enticed by a big "Hollywood" film. Just because you throw a couple of big names around and add some expensive effects doesn't mean you make a great film. And too many film makers seem allured to this cheap, flashy trickery. Just take Oblivion as an example - Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, apocalyptic wasteland, got to be good, right? I'm afraid not, with a story so obvious I guessed the twist in 20 minutes. So Gravity must be the same, right? Clooney and Bullock as astronauts trapped in space after an accident, combined with huge special effects; I was expecting an okay film at best. Well I don't have any good metaphors but "eating my words at a buffet of my own doubts" might sum it up.
Gravity was incredible; I can't put it any better! The effects were mind boggling. It was a genuine pleasure to see a film push the boundaries of what 3D can do. Avatar really started the 3D revolution of the last few years, and since then it's often been used just so Disney can impress a couple of ten year olds. But this took everything I knew about 3D and chucked it out the window with the words "every 3D film you watch will be compared to this!"
The cinematography was genius, on an Einstein kind-of level. Watching Gravity wasn't like watching a film, more like watching 90 minutes through a window of Bullocks nightmare (an exciting nightmare at that). And even though the POV switched from spaceship to Bullock and back again through the film you barely noticed the cuts; it really was that seamless. This just helped to immerse you and by the end I felt like I had been to space.
When it comes to acting I have no doubt the words Oscar will be thrown around with this film in the next few months. Just for the record I'm not referring to Clooney. He was good, don't get me wrong, but you could have just called him Danny Ocean and no one would have noticed. But Sandra Bullock was the real treasure here; pushing everything actors/actresses should aspire too. The truly talented actor makes you believe in their situation; believe their hope or fear is real and she did this more than any actress I have ever watched.
The skeptics of this film are going to trash the scientific inaccuracies and I am with them to an extent. The spaceship orbits were wrong and the spacesuits were changed, to name a couple. But these aren't noticeable in any way during the film (unless you're an astronaut). Even Alfonso Cuarón, the director, said he did this so the plot held together. Anyway this is a Sci-Fi/thriller, not a documentary, so the man was just doing his job.
In all Gravity was a triumph in cinematography, special effects and acting. But let's not forget ultimately a film should thrill you to the core, which Gravity did perfectly.