![]() One also might question Sandra Bullock’s choice in spacesuit undergarments, which dispenses with the unsexy normal liquid-cooled longjohns for a skimpy vest and tight shorts. ![]() The Chinese Space Station depicted also seems a bit bigger than the Tiangong currently in orbit. The movements of the actors in their space suits (or rather the CGI) also seems far more flexible than the real thing, where the pressurized stiffness means that astronauts can return from orbit having lost fingernails due to stiff gloves. In this alternate reality, the Space Shuttle for example is still in service, along with the Manned Manoeuvring Unit (MMU) – a critical plot device for this film. However there are some parts which may make the dedicated space fan raise an eyebrow or two. Sir Isaac Newton would approve. Even detail and minutiae like a character following checklists or the way a flame burns in zero-G has also been incorporated into the film. Much attention too has been given to the physics of how bodies move in space, giving a realistic sense of being in orbit yourself. The initial plot (and danger) for example is set running by a Russian satellite being destroyed in orbit (similar to China’s 2007 anti-satellite test)– which causes a cascading ‘ Kesseler Syndrome’ chain reaction in orbit. The film bears the hallmarks of extensive research and attention to detail – in portraying accurate and realistic orbital mechanics and operations. Secondly, for this reviewer, ‘Gravity’ also reminds one of classic ‘50s short story scifi - the precarious situation, hopelessness, the rapidly dwindling oxygen supply is a throwback to the great written science fiction of yesterday – and will have you sweating in your cinema seat. She gives a great performance as does, of course, Clooney, who provides a fantastic contrast as the veteran astronaut, cool and unruffled in a seemingly impossible situation. ‘Gravity’ in her sense is not just letting go of the Earth, but her emotional baggage too. However as noted before, Sandra Bullock’s character in particular, is nursing a personal tragedy. Storywise this is fairly basic set-up – being entirely set in orbit with no flashbacks or cutaways to mission control or family on the Earth. It's a truly immersive experience - those who get airsick or seasick easily may want to skip a meal beforehand. The 3D in ‘Gravity’ is used to good effect throughout the film and the rotating, spinning camera puts the audience in orbit. The introduction, with a close-up of the Earth in LEO is particularly breathtaking in 3D – especially with the subtle depth perception of the clouds scudding below. Meanwhile a shot of Sandra Bullock’s character as a tiny figure tumbling further into the void as she loses contact with George Clooney’s character emphasises the vast loneliness of space, while a later view gives us the green curtain of Aurora Borealis poking out of Earths thin atmosphere. With external shots filmed using CGI the movie makes space look simultaneously majestic and terrifying – evoking the best awe-inspiring space scenes since perhaps ‘2001 – A Space Odyssey’. Despite the unrelenting peril, space has never looked so beautiful on screen. 'Gravity’ opened this years’ Venice Film Festival and scooped its Future Film Festival Digital Award. ![]() Working in low-Earth orbit repairing the Hubble Space Telescope, It is no big spoiler to say that their spacecraft (a still-in service Space Shuttle) is destroyed early on in the film, leaving Clooney and Bullock lost in space and fighting for survival. Gravity puts you into a spacewalker's worst nightmare - completely adrift in orbit (Warner Bros).įrom director Alfonso Cuarón (‘Children of Men’) Warner Bros ‘Gravity’ is a two-handed science fiction film centred around two astronauts, laid back veteran George Clooney and Sandra Bullock on her first mission to space and wrestling with her personal demons. Lost in space? TIM ROBINSON reviews the new visually stunning science fiction film centred on astronauts adrift in orbit that raises the growing menace of space debris.
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