Film Review: ‘Gravity’ is a Visionary Expansion on Our Humanity

Rating: 4.5/5.0

CHICAGO – Space looks like a vast, dark ocean in the new film “Gravity,” with the sparkling blue orb of our planet Earth beckoning the voyagers on that ocean homeward. Co-writer/director Alfonso Cuarón fashions a metaphoric dreamscape that places the small molecules of human beings within the vast expanse, fighting to understand the value of their place in that sea of cosmos.

The film is a unique experience, the culmination of all the current cinema technology coming together to create a new visionary sensation on screen. Time and place are absolutely created, providing a sense of awe that probably has equivalents in the first Edison movies, the advent of talkies, widescreen, “2001, A Space Odyssey,” “Star Wars” and any breakthrough that alters the perception of what is possible to experience on a movie screen. Coupled with this is a tale of survival that pits the puny dot of a human against the hostile, airless environment. In that fight all possibilities are realized, and the will to live becomes the prime factor in defining what life means.

The film opens on a shuttle mission depicting space walking astronauts fixing a space telescope. One of the mission specialists doing software adjustments is Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock). Floating untethered on a jet pack nearby is the commander of the shuttle, Matt Kowalski (George Clooney). Stone is a civilian who trained to be on the shuttle, Kowalski a veteran astronaut making his last flight.

A message from mission control (voice of Ed Harris) informs the crew that a field of space debris is heading their way, and they must abort their space walking. The communications suddenly black out, and the debris field hits them almost simultaneously. The wreckage of the shuttle is devastating, with Kowalski and Stone trapped in their spacesuits, pursuing a new way to get home.

”Gravity” opens everywhere on October 4th. See local listings for theaters, 3D/IMAX options and show times. Featuring Sandra Bullock, George Clooney and the voice of Ed Harris. Written by Alfonso Cuarón and Jonás Cuarón, Directed by Alfonso Cuarón. Rated “PG-13”