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EDITOR'S PICK
'Gravity'
- visually exciting suspense drama
Rating: ***
Alfonso Cuaron's "Gravity" is a 3D science fiction thriller, but not
in the conventional sense. With no iota of fantasy in it, the film is simple and
engaging to the core and evokes strong polar reactions.
It is outstanding from a technical perspective with controlled acting and a
precise tone. But at the same time, it does not have much of a story line. It is
slow, lacks pace and even sub-plots. It is attractive yet disturbing, detailed
yet enormous and specific yet universally relatable.
It is a survival tale set in space. There is no glamour, aliens, antagonists,
specialised automated robotic action sequences or supernatural phenomena.
"Gravity" begins with an exceptionally brilliant shot that seems to
last forever. What starts off as a speck in the darkness slowly grows and glows.
Earth is beautifully captured from over a distance of 600 km from space where
three astronauts are working on a space station. The shot is brilliant and jaw
dropping.
The focus shifts to the space station and onto the mood of the three astronauts.
It's a regular day in space. Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock), an accomplished
medical engineer is busy fixing a technical problem on the exterior of the
spacecraft. She is accompanied by another hand and Matt Kowalski (George Clooney),
a veteran astronaut on his final mission, is just clowning about with a jetpack
strapped to him.
The disposition of the three seems routine yet frivolous. They are floating,
tumbling and swirling in space solemnly enjoying their solitude and their work.
All of a sudden they are informed that as a result of a chain reaction from the
Russians having shot down one of their own satellites, debris from this
neighbouring space station is hurtling towards them.
Before the three of them can react to this warning the debris from the destroyed
spacecraft hits them, tossing them about and damaging their shuttle. Thrown into
oblivion, the astronauts struggle to survive and this forms the crux of the
story.
As time passes, things go awry. What keeps you hooked is your curiosity to know;
what happens when the umbilical cord that holds the astronauts to the spacecraft
snaps...when the pressure vessel on the spacecraft ruptures...when there is a
fire on board? These questions are all answered in awe inspiring detail.
On the performance front, Sandra Bullock is composed and controlled. She
expresses herself more with her breathing and voice modulation and subtle facial
expressions. George Clooney provides some entertainment for those short of
attention with his jostling around and cheesy one-liners.
What touches you about "Gravity" is its unpretentious nature. It has
no hidden agendas.
The story, written by director Cuaron and his son Jonas, may seem formulaic but
it is the technical expertise that will baffle you continuously. The outstanding
direction and visuals are apparent in the 13-minute continuous opening scene
where the camera faultlessly zooms in and out and rotates at various angles to
give you a mind-boggling cinematic experience.
The director of photography, Emmanuel Lubezki's frames with images of
astonishing clarity seamlessly merge with the computer generated images created
by Tim Webber.
The background score by Steven Price is commendable. He has effectively created
a sound which has an awesomely eerie trace.
Overall, the production values of the film are good.
"Gravity" is nothing more than just a visually exciting suspense
drama.