Multi-layered, thoughtful film making

Rating: 7/10 (25 May 2016)

Moon is one of those movies that I had only heard about through word of mouth by people of trustworthy taste. I finally gave it a watch and can see why it has a cult status. There is not a lot of action. Instead it delivers a slow build up resulting in mind blowing, climactic scenes. Sam Rockwell delivers an outstanding performance throughout every scene which gives immense credibility to his actions throughout. We witness a man who is completely alone in space - with only the focus of the job in hand and the prospect of returning to his family at the end of his three year contract keeping him mentally strong, and able to keep going. We are encouraged to comprehend such levels of isolation and lack of human interaction and how that can affect the psychology of a person. I genuinely expected the movie to build towards a continuing mental unravelling of Sam Bell resulting in full blown madness - but the story line takes a direction that I would never have anticipated. The result is poignant and tragic. Sam Rockwell totally delivers as a person torn apart by circumstances outwith his control. The madness - it turns out - is not within him - it is in what he discovers and he is prey to it. The movie raises a lot of ethical questions, and is quite rightly a sci fi cult classic.