It always feels like somebody's watching Rockwell

Rating: 7/10 (5 October 2009)

Who could you watch in a movie if they were roughly the only actor in the film? It worked with Tom Hanks. "I am Legend" was a hit for Will Smith. Could probably work with Denzel Washington and maybe Brad Pitt. Who came up with the idea that Sam Rockwell, eternally under-appreciated lead actor often used in supporting roles, could pull off such a feat? If you're a Rockwell fan (I am), you know he's up to the task. He delivers big-time as a harvester of energy resources on the Moon, who encounters an unusual, yet familiar individual. There are obvious tips of the hat to "2001" all over this movie, but that's a good film to emulate. Director Duncan Jones does a great job at establishing the isolation of Rockwell's character, Sam Bell, left on the Moon to communicate solely with order-keeping robot, GERTY, voiced by Kevin Spacey.
Let's go into everything above in depth. "Moon" doesn't pack the budget of a film like "District 9" or "Star Trek", but successfully creates a plausible Moon surface, lunar domicile and hi-tech mining machines. Its main asset is not in whiz-bang visuals, but in creating an eerie existence for its main character, Sam. In doing so, "Moon" hearkens back to a not-often-visited form of science fiction – the thinking-man's sci-fi genre. Think of the great movies in this class – "The Thing", "Outland" and "Invasion of the Body Snatchers". That's good company, and "Moon" belongs there as an excellent mood piece.
Unsurprisingly, Sam deals mostly with boredom and restlessness as he finishes up a three-year contract mining The Moon for Helium-3. Space being a lonely place isn't exactly a new concept, but it's handled well here as Sam's reminiscence and longing for a return to his family is coupled with a mysterious (and perhaps nefarious) company that has hired his services. GERTY is Sam's only friend, but being a computer, GERTY is more interested in the tasks at hand than anyone's well-being.
I know what you're saying, "Yeah, that's 2001". And you're right. I think the thing that makes "Moon" unique is Rockwell. I think this film benefits from his status as a not-so-leading man. He can embody all the different sides of Sam Bell with equal ease and a great sense of humor. All that time alone on The Moon allows Sam to get to know himself, and he gets more of an extra opportunity than most of us. And as Sam discovers how Lunar Industries is using questionable methods to prolong his employment, Rockwell brings real pathos to his situation, and makes "Moon", in the end, a moving film as well as intriguing science fiction.
So, with all this praise, why not four stars? I thought the ending was a little abrupt. When such care is taken to build up this plot to the climax, I wanted a little more time with the denouementand a cigarette. Finally, all the homage, in the end, makes "Moon" a touch too familiar to take me completely out of my comfort zone like "Blade Runner" or "Dark City" did. I think Duncan Jones proves with "Moon" that he can graduate successfully from commercials to features, and in the future, he won't need deference to great works in order to make his own.