Might just be the best film of the year

Rating: 10/10 (13 October 2013)

As a HUGE fan of director Alfonzo Cuaron (HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN, which I consider the best film of the series; CHILDREN OF MEN, one of the best films of the last decade), I'd been looking forward to his outer space drama GRAVITY since it was announced. Of course, word of mouth from its film festival premieres was so incredibly good that it seemed like it couldn't possibly live up to this hype, right?
Short answer: YES IT DOES.
Synopsizing the film doesn't do it justice, but it follows astronauts Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock), a first-timer in space, and Matt Kowalski, a smooth-talking chatterbox veteran who are forced to do whatever they can to survive together after a freak shower of debris destroys their shuttle in the most hostile environment that humankind has ever visited: outer space.
That's really it. The film unfolds in real time, and thanks to Cuaron's vision and the talents of Bullock and Clooney and all of the technical staff, GRAVITY is not only the best film of 2013 so far (and will likely remain so), it's also the most visually immersive and absorbing film I may have ever seen in my 36 years of remembering seeing films. At a brisk but unrelentingly intense 90 minutes, GRAVITY grabs you and it NEVER lets go. The script by Cuaron and his son Jonas isn't just filled with dialogue and action that gets you from one moment to another. It has surprises, and a significant amount of heart as it becomes slowly less about just survival and more about living life.
What really does it though, and this might be where the film might suffer on home video, is the ASTONISHING use of 3D. As opposed to 99.9999% of films that are shown in 3D nowadays, which is just a shoddy post-conversion so that the studio might squeeze a few more bucks out of the moviegoer, Cuaron actually USES the 3D as part of his visual storytelling. There are moments where you literally put your hands in front of your face in order to block the oncoming debris or whatever danger you might otherwise see coming at you. This speaks more to the immersive feeling of the film than just about anything else other than the storyline, performances, cinematography, effects and musical score by Steven Price because all of these things are incredibly well- done. Bullock EASILY gives the performance of her career here, and Clooney does a brilliant job at keeping things grounded.
GRAVITY is not a very subtle film, and it's not designed to be. There aren't layers upon layers of commentary like CHILDREN OF MEN, and there aren't subversive elements like in PRISONER OF AZKABAN. This is cinematic storytelling without the veneer of having to be high-minded. It's pure cinema that will terrify you, exhilarate you, and absorb you like no other film in recent memory. It's a great artist that knows when to cast aside pretense that isn't necessary and just tell a breathtaking story. Cuaron is one of those rare artists, and GRAVITY is one of those very rare films.