Gravity
Starring: Sandra Bullock, George Clooney
Directed By: Alfonso Cuaron
Reviewed by Danielle Muir

[rating: 4.5/5]

Visually, Cuaron is the Da Vinci of our time.  When you step into a work he’s handcrafted, you know you’re in for nothing short of technical brilliance. Now he’s knocked a few American films out of the park, the studios are happy to part with the cash dollars to realize his extraordinary visions – which bring us to Gravity.  The closest most of us will ever get to space, or ever want to get once you’ve been put through the ringer by the worst day Sandra Bullock has ever had.

Hence Gravity is unlike nothing you’ve seen before.  Virtually in real-time, we track Bullock’s character Ryan Stone, a scientist doing something complicated with chips and boards on her first spacewalk.  Her and larrikin Captain Matt Kowalski’s mission spins out of control as some rogue debris obliterates the structure and connecting rope that ties the astronauts together.  Armed with nothing but some air pistons and with various other space stations miles away, they must find a way back to big blue without drifting into the endless void that is space.

The technical attention to detail has got to be a shoe-in for some Oscar-noms.  The re-creation of earth is flawless (from what I can tell, but hey I’m no astronaut), as are the various space stations, ships and pods that hurtle towards you – mostly in pieces.

An important thing to remember is to appreciate the overall beauty of what’s being projected rather than pick-apart the minor details.  If you’re searching for some great dialogue or intricate character drama, then I’d recommend re-thinking your life and marvelling at the visual spectacle.  Clooney’s Kowalski is highly entertaining for his limited screen-time, and pairs well with Bullock’s out-of-her-depth scientist – and I understand the need for the character to have a reason to want to live or fight the battle, but the whole ‘I had a daughter’ bit from Stone seemed a bit too mushy and clichéd for such a work of art.  But, I remembered that I was picking apart the wrong element and proceed to get sucked into the spectacle again.

Gravity is an absolute visual masterpiece and the experience is unlike anything us content, ground-dwelling humans have experienced before, unless you’ve seen a similar documentary experience in Imax.  In which case go anyway because Cuaron’s a technical genius who deserves to be celebrated.