Technically flawless and one of the greatest cinema experiences ever offered

Rating: 9/10 (7 October 2013)

Disclaimer – This review was based on an IMAX 3-D version of the film.
If you're reading this review and have yet to take off into orbit with Gravity you should stop reading now and find the biggest screen available (in 3-D) and partake in what is likely to be one of if not the most technically flawless films ever made – for Gravity make no doubt about it is an experience literally out of this world and a cinema experience that will perhaps forever rank as one of the best I have been lucky enough to partake in.
Any regular to J and E would be more than familiar with my advance hype and keenness for Gravity to hit our cinema screens so without further ado I can say this – I told you so! (I don't get to say that to often so allow me my indulgence there) and as a repeat – go see Gravity now on the biggest screen available to you.
It would be possible to rant on for hours on end about just how marvelous Alfonso Cuaron's space thriller is as a film making achievement and CGI touchstone – the computer generated imagery on display here is scarily realistic! Gravity open's with one of the most audacious and spectacular tracking shots ever committed to film and from there it continues to push the boundaries of what has been done on screen before. It's clear that many pain staking hours of thought and commitment went into every minute and every shot of this film, from the construction of space tears through to every star in the vast open universe. It really is a joy to behold and no doubt a benchmark for filmmakers to now take off from.
All this technical wizardry would have fallen somewhat by the way side if Cuaron could not get a team to hold the movie together but thankfully his duo of Bullock (in a role that will be featuring in awards season) and the ever charming silver fox George Clooney deliver. Clooney offers his usual roguish charm and ever calm demeanor but it really is Bullocks film when it comes to the acting stakes and she really does give it her all. Bullock's performance gets under your skin so that every bump, near miss or floating through a shuttle will slowly feel like it is you the viewer experiencing these things which in all honesty can be a pretty scary thing when you are hurtling towards a space station at the speed of a bullet! With 3 paragraphs of praise behind me it now must be said that while Gravity as a technical point of view could be graded at nothing short of a perfect 5 stars there is something amiss in the film that stops it from reaching absolute perfection despite it being just to tough to pinpoint as a definite what that is. It could be any range of things from some script conveniences through to some misguided character driven scenes but really these are slight missteps in a movie universe that is totally and enthrallingly enjoyable for every last minute of its running time.
Gravity upon conclusion is one of the year's best movies, a film that will undoubtedly live long in the history of film and filmmaking. You have to be willing to take the ride with the film but it's a ride that you'll want to go on again and again and with that, Gravity deserves every last award that will come at it like hurling space debris come this awards season.
4 and a half fire extinguishers out of 5 For more movie reviews and opinions check out - www.jordanandeddie.wordpress.com