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If nothing else, Alfonso Cuarón’s “Gravity” is a testament to how body-rockingly powerful imagery can be. If this terrifying and life-affirming space adventure were viewed on mute, it would still be one of the year’s grandest achievements. In fact, since watching the film muted may well be the preferable experience, let’s just get the movie’s few missteps out of the way. The protagonist is Dr. Ryan Stone (a superb Sandra Bullock), an astronaut on her first space mission, who’s left literally adrift when satellite debris destroys the shuttle she was repairing. Her dialogue is clunky, her character arc is weak, and the script spoon-feeds the growth she finally gains by coming to terms with grief.
But these are ultimately miniscule shortcomings when one considers “Gravity’s” grand scheme. The film’s few naysayers have argued the film is all style, no substance; however, style can have epic substance in itself, and this awe-inspiring movie is evidence of that. It evokes such classics as “2001” and “Alien,” but there’s no science fiction at play here. And whatever hokum we may hear from Stone is trumped by our universal and existential identification with her plight.
From the allure of the earth below, to Stone’s silent orbit, to an embryonic shot that’s both deliberate and heart-stoppingly beautiful, the endless metaphors inherent in Cuarón’s visuals will make the film a piece to be studied for years to come. This is a movie that, in its technical virtuosity and intertwined human elements, towers above your typical theatrical experience.
Even in watching “Avatar,” there was a certain palpable transcendence, if only in how we could feel the awesomeness of its technique in our bones. “Gravity” goes much further with its all-encompassing themes of spirituality, equality and mortality. A non-religious woman, Stone struggles to migrate to space stations from various countries, with idols of their respective religions on display. And when she finally [spoiler alert] touches down on Earth, it’s somewhere clearly, yet nondescriptly, overseas. But it doesn’t matter. This mysterious blue orb, and the space around it, is home to all of us.
Gravity
PG-13
Three-and-a-half reels out of four
Now playing at area theaters
Recommended Rental
Maniac
R
Available Tuesday
In this grisly, yet stylish, remake of a vintage cult classic, Elijah Wood plays a serial stalker with a mannequin shop, who hunts down young women and keeps their scalps as wigs for his lifeless dolls. The conceit of the film is that we rarely see Wood himself; the events are viewed almost entirely through his character’s eyes, giving audiences a first-hand tour of a maniac’s day-to-day. It’s a neat trick, but neater still is the surprisingly tragic chords the film strikes.
Contact the South Philly Review at editor@southphillyreview.com.
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