A beautiful film about the lethal indifference of outer space

Rating: 10/10 (8 January 2014)

It's all too infrequently that a film like Gravity comes along. And by that I simply mean a movie that truly shows the possibilities of what a blockbuster film can be. It's very rare that such state-of-the-art special effects and A-list actors are combined together to such extraordinary effect, in a film that uses these things in ways that are surprising, intelligent and genuinely artistic. This is Hollywood movie-making of the highest calibre. Director Alfonso Cuarón has to be given enormous credit for overseeing such an intensely cinematic film, while underpinning it with a feeling of authenticity that elevates it to an even higher level. It's a very rare thing to have blockbuster effects used in such a way to make the audience experience something so incredible that nevertheless feels so real.
If you praise the film to someone who hasn't seen it and they then ask you what it's about, it's kind of difficult explaining the impact by describing the story. It doesn't sound very interesting on paper and that is because the story ultimately isn't very important. Gravity is pure cinema. Where a lot of movies would work well in a book, this is a film that could only work in cinema. I have never been much of an advocate of 3D technology; I have felt it is really just a money-making ploy by the studios. When I have enjoyed it in a movie like, for example, Dredd, it's really mainly because the film itself is very good in the first place. With Gravity, it's the first time that it's actually felt necessary. This is a film that really has to be seen in a theatre, preferably on an IMAX screen, such is its immersive power. Visually, it is a tour de force. The incredible, opening shot is an extended unbroken single take that simply takes the breath away. Obviously this was achieved by studio trickery but it is never less than believable and goes on for what must be fifteen minutes, in which time we revolve around the space shuttle, hover over the Earth, go up close and personal with the astronauts, experience the violence of an outer space disaster and then even move into the helmet of an astronaut for a personal point-of-view. It's simply breath-taking and cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki has to be given huge credit for his amazing work on this film. The icing on the cake is provided by Steven Price, whose astonishingly effective score plays up the tension extremely effectively. It's what could best be described as loud, minimalist music that really feels correct for what it actually is - music in a void. It contrasts superbly with the use of silence, which the film often is; which of course is another subtle way in which it differs from most blockbusters.
I think one of the things that makes Gravity such an overwhelming experience is that it is so visceral visually but so intimate in other ways. The huge scale of events is mixed with the deeply personal emotional and physical experiences of the central character played by Sandra Bullock. Despite the presence of George Clooney, this is pretty close to being a one woman show. Bullock is very good and convinces consistently in what must have been a pretty demanding role to pull off so believably. She brings the human aspect to proceedings, making us empathise and feel the full impact of the situation. Gravity has to be the most realistic portrayal yet of what the difficulties of life in space actually are. But it achieves this objective in such an overwhelmingly beautiful way. Ambitious pure science fiction such as this is not often given such big budget treatment. In this sense it resembles the granddaddy of them all, 2001: A Space Odyssey, but without the mysterious ambiguity. But with the beauty intact.