Review of Gravity (2013) by Foogo — 04 May 2014

Growing up in Flower Mound, Texas, I quickly discovered that there was very little to do for a teenager without much money. If you weren't hungry for some fast food or in the mood to window shop, you might as well go home and watch television. Thankfully for me, an AMC Movie Theater opened in Highland Village not even 5 minutes away from where I live in 2007. It is very difficult to try to explain just how many afternoons and evenings I have spent there with friends or family seeing the new hit movie. Visiting there at least every other weekend, I must have spent at least $1,000 since it opened. Seven years of the good, the bad, and the ugly, and by now, I might even be considered an unofficial movie critic.

So, a couple months ago I heard from some friends and family members about this exciting new film, Gravity. Critics raved calling it the greatest movie of 2013, destined for glory, and certain it would be considered an instant classic for years to come. I was skeptical, but they were right after all, at least about the awards. Just a little while ago, Gravity won Best Cinematography, Best Editing, and Best Director at the 2014 Oscars. By the end of the night Gravity had won seven Oscars, an impressive feat. I never thought that the trailer for some space movie with Bullock and Clooney looked particularly good, but by this point I had to see it, and so I did.

Gravity was one of the most confused and predictable movies I have seen in the last couple of years. The whole idea of the movie for those unfamiliar is that while on a spacewalk, Dr. Ryan Stone (Bullock) and her team are hit by debris from a Russian satellite that has mysteriously exploded. Unfortunately, Dr. Stone becomes the sole survivor of the impact and must try to get home without help from NASA. This is where things start to get really confusing, as there is almost no explanation as to why no one can help Stone with the establishment of a simple radio communication. But hey, it’s a movie after all so we can look past a basic plot hole. Since the film takes place in the quiet void of space, much of the plot advancement is based entirely off of Stone’s own internal struggle of getting back to earth, and the fear that she might not be able to. However if you were hoping for a main character who is full of life and determined to fight for her life, you’re looking at the wrong movie entirely. Stone apparently has no family or friends and according to her, no one cares if she lives or dies. As if the plot wasn't struggling enough, we now have a main character that doesn’t really want to try to survive and is content to just sit in her spacecraft and wait for the inevitable. Yes, that is actually part of the movie which goes on for about 15 minutes. Earlier I mentioned that not only is the plot confusing, but it’s stupidly predictable. Once you watch the first couple of “close calls” that Stone has, you realize that that’s the entire basis of the movie. Stone simply cannot perform a single task well, so by the last half of the movie, you can accurately predict how events will play out since you know that not only is the main character an incompetent buffoon, but she’s also the luckiest person in existence. That being said, the visuals were interesting and oddly vibrant for such a drab setting. In the end though, I found Gravity to be emotionally stale, entirely expected, and a characterless excuse for some sort of space adventure. I would recommend avoiding this movie altogether, but if you must see it, borrow it from a friend or watch it on the internet. You’re better off spending $10 on a really tasty sandwich, at least that doesn't come with a side of disappointment.