Gripping tension and visual splendor. A true movie event.

Rating: 9/10 (8 October 2013)

Gravity (Cuaron, 2013, A)
To my mind, those who knock the script are mostly failing to see the forest for the trees. Problems are there to be sure, but to avoid seeing this would be a regrettable miscalculation. For me, the script worked in a terse, elemental sort of way as it pokes toward transcendent themes that are better evoked through the visual and aural landscape than the dialog. But I think the story elements stand solely because Bullock lifts them on up on her shoulders and ultimately her performance not only deeply impressed me, but moved me. I believe most writers (and I fall squarely within this camp) lack the necessary vocabulary to express the wonder of these visuals. Thankfully, they speak for themselves. Yet, perhaps I am most pleased to find a film, so rare in the current American mega-production model, that is precisely as long as it must be. I can't speculate how this one will age (even four years have not been kind to AVATAR) but for now it is miraculous.
Final thought: For a much more eloquent assessment, I suggest you consult MZS's review at RogerEbert.com (www.rogerebert.com/reviews/gravity-2013) or AO Scott at the New York Times.