A Space Odyssey meets Robinson Crusoe in this new American sci-fi thriller classic

Rating: 9/10 (5 October 2013)

Very few American films today classified as 'entertainment', actually can rise to the level of Art. 'Gravity', the new sci-fi, 'Space Odyssey-like' thriller, starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, I'm happy to report, has made it into that pantheon. You would never imagine that a film that only features two actors, can be so compelling and captivating; but coupled with a barrage of extraordinary digital effects, co-writer and director Alfonso Cuarón, has pulled it off!
The story begins with Dr. Ryan Stone (Bullock), a bio-medical engineer and veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski (Clooney), on a spacewalk outside their space shuttle, conducting routine experiments, when they're alerted by Mission Control in Houston that a Russian satellite has exploded and the debris field is headed straight for the shuttle (inciting incident). In a spectacular sequence, the shuttle is destroyed and Stone is hurled around in space still tethered to the craft, bouncing on and off of it, like a ping pong ball. When she's finally separated from the craft, Kowalski, utilizing his thruster pack to maneuver, saves her from floating out into space and they make their way back to the space shuttle, which they discover has been destroyed and the rest of the crew members dead (one of the astronauts who had been outside the craft, has his face blown off).
As we break into Act II, Stone and Kowalski must make their way to the International Space Station (ISS), if they have any chance of survival. The 'ticking time clock', so inimical to thrillers, is used to great effect throughout the film. Kowalski sets his watch for 90 minutes, because that's when the debris field, will make its first orbit around the earth, and come back and possible hit them again. While floating toward the ISS, we learn of Stone's back story (her daughter was tragically killed in a schoolyard accident and she then decided to devote her life to her work). Using the thruster, Stone and Kowalski arrive at the ISS, only to find the stakes are raised again, as the ISS crew has abandoned ship and the Russian Soyuz space module has been damaged, useless for re-entry to earth. Even more thrilling and shattering is that Stone finds herself tangled in the already deployed parachute from the module and is holding on to Kowalski, whose weight is causing the parachute cords to break.
Suffice it to say, 'Gravity' avoids Hollywood endings by realistically arguing that space exploration is a danger business—and may result in death. Stone finds herself alone after Kowalski 'cuts himself loose' and we approach the 'dark moment' of the second Act, as Stone must maneuver the damaged module to a Chinese space station, Tiangong. But when she discovers that the module has no more fuel, it appears there's no hope. Stone's hopelessness is highlighted when she reaches a farmer on a short wave frequency, who doesn't speak English. The dark moment of the second act, always results in the protagonist discovering a solution to the problem; that happens during her hallucination that Kowalski has returned to help her, advising that she can still use the re-entry rockets to move the craft.
Now the protagonist must implement the 'solution' as we head toward the climax in Act III. There's more spectacular, edge of your seat machinations, when Stone uses a fire extinguisher as a makeshift thruster, to get herself over and into the Tiangong. I won't go into the rest of it, except to say that Stone must not only get herself out of a real pickle during the fiery re-entry to earth, but must solve a new crisis, after splashing down into a body of water, in a remote section on earth.
While I've been hard on Sandra Bullock, especially for her recent lame performance in 'The Heat', here she proves (when given the right material) that she's as good as any of the top stars out there today. It's an extraordinarily nuanced, low key performance, coupled with some physically demanding stunts, which I suspect were not all dependent on digital effects. Do you hear 'Oscar' calling? Clooney too is masterful, as he also delivers just the right kind of restrained performance to make this whole thing believable.
Alfonso Cuarón has admitted that not everything we see on screen is physically or scientifically possible. But so what! Much of the technical aspect is true to form and looks quite believable. 'Gravity' is much more than a spectacular visual feast—it's about a struggle against overwhelming odds. When Bullock (Stone) emerges from a watery tomb, after 'going it alone', a la 'Robinson Crusoe', there is the sense that we've just witnessed an awe-inspiring, story of survival and an uplifting paean, to the human spirit.