Visually great, story-wise fine as well

Rating: 8/10 (17 October 2013)

Gravity is Alfonso Cuarón's first feature movie in seven years. He got help here with the screenplay from his son Jonás and also from the film's co-star George Clooney, one of only two actors we see in the film. The other is Sandra Bullock as the undisputed lead and there's occasionally some voice acting, by Ed Harris and others. Harris' inclusion may or may not have to do with his fine work in "Apollo 13". The story is summarized very quickly: Bullock and Clooney end up in an accident in space and are confronted with the difficult task of making it back to Earth alive.
My favorite section of the film was definitely the first 30 minutes. It's basically that part of the film where Clooney and Bullock share the screen and Clooney elevates those scenes considerably. His critics say he always gets typecast and only shows the same shtick over and over again. (Strangely, for other actors, that is considered smart role selection.) I strongly disagree. He almost always gives multilayered performances and is rarely overshadowed by somebody else in the cast acting-wise although he's been in films with almost all the big names. And let's not forget how he's been writing, directing and producing quality films for a long time. No surprise he's the Academy's darling right now and deservedly so. He's also the best thing about this movie, together with the visual aspects of course. This film could very well dominate these categories at the Oscars and it looks like Emmanuel Lubezki could finally end up with his first Oscar. Anyway, I wrote before that the first half of the movie is my favorite and that's true, mainly because of Clooney who totally nails his lighter scenes (taking away the tension) as well as his dramatic work after the accident. Another reason is that in there we basically see people out in space all the time and it's just mesmerizingly beautiful. If it had gone on like that, this would certainly be my new favorite film of 2013. Unfortunately it didn't, but it's still in my top5.
When it turns into a one-woman show by Bullock, after Clooney drifts into space (the only scene that had my eyes kinda wet), it gets a bit worse, but still not really bad. Bullock is basically making her way through ships, shuttles and space stations and at some point it just got less interesting when she fell again and some mechanism failed again and the alarm went off again etc. and at some point I just stopped being interested in what was wrong now. It also certainly didn't help that she's not my favorite actress really and this film could not make me see the light on her. There were scenes like the howling, which could have been so great if performed differently, it just didn't engage me at all. Same goes for the scene in whhhich she discovers that there's no more fuel and keeps going "You gotta be kidding me." There I almost cringed. Clooney's short reappearance later on wasn't on par with his early scenes either, although it was still better than most from the second half of the film as those scenes that included references to Bullock's life, or lack thereof, were still emotionally superior to her pure fight for survival. The writing was another strength of the film. When it was good, it was really good and the message behind the film could certainly motivate someone to get out of a hole they've been in for way too long.
Finally, about the ending, let me say that I may have preferred a different, unhappy outcome. Sure it may have been a bummer to some, but the final scene on the beach did not hit me as hard emotionally or made me as ecstatic as I'd have hoped for and it could still convey the aforementioned message strongly if she had only almost made it. Actually it would have been an interesting symbolism if she had managed to survive in space, but not survive on Earth when the water entered her cabin for example. Or maybe go for a bit of an open ending with credits rolling in right before the crucial moment when we see if she will live or die. Anyway, even with these criticisms, it's a well-written, visually enthralling film with a good story line. I'm really surprised so many actresses passed before Bullock got the part. I personally believe I might have enjoyed it more with somebody else in the lead, but it was still a good effort by her. Gravity comes close to a must-watch. Very much recommended.