Thursday, October 3, 2013

Gravity

To describe Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity as a mere film would be to commit a great injustice. Gravity isn’t just a film, it’s an experience. A damn impressive one at that. The plot is simple: Sandra Bullock gets lost in space. But the execution is otherworldly. Shot digitally on a paltry budget of $80 million, Gravity is one of the best-looking films of this or any time. The plot, in all its simplicity, is destined to encourage detractors. But the grace in which this experience is handled will undoubtedly inspire praise.

The very extended opening shot of the film sets up the entire story. High in the limitless depths of space, astronaut Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is on a space walk mission to fix a portion of a shuttle. Stone’s commander, Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) is right there with her, cracking jokes about days past. Soon into their mission, satellite debris destroys their ship and kills the rest of the crew, leaving Stone (who is on her first ever space mission) and Kowalski (who is on his last), to fight for themselves.

I’ve given you the first 10 minutes of the picture, and that’s all you’re going to get. Gravity clocks in at 90 minutes and takes place in a time frame about double that. Not a single second of this film is wasted, and it would be criminal to ruin its ingenuity in print, when it so deserves to be seen on the screen.
As he proved in his last film, Children of Men, Alfonso Cuarón is a master of digital technology. Coupled with the expert precision of cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, Gravity is simply a sight to behold. The computer effects present throughout are flawless. They look authentic and establish a persistently gorgeous and, at times, appropriately dreadful mood. For contrast, last year’s The Amazing Spider-Man was made for $230 million, and its digital effects are comparable to that of a video game. Gravity looks like real life, in all its horror and glory.

(Note: I have seen the film twice, both in IMAX 3D. I’m generally not a fan of the 3D format, but if there was ever a film worthy of a few extra dollars, Gravity is surely it.)

MTV changed film editing. Music videos introduced rapid cutting, thereby forcing viewers to pay attention faster, as opposed to closer. The average American film as long as Gravity contains 600-700 editing cuts. Action films usually have upwards of 3,000 cuts. Gravity has 156. Total.
Often in action and/or suspense films today, it’s damn near impossible to get a full grasp of the action at hand. Shots during action sequences are usually held for less than a second. We’re cutting to different perspectives, different angles, measuring different depths of field, and so on, causing an unsatisfactory sense of disorientation. Me personally, I like to know what’s going on in a film, not have to dart my eyes around the screen, hoping to catch whatever image I can in half a second, before cutting away to a different shot. Gravity eliminates that bewilderment, which is odd, given that Dr. Stone rarely has a clue where she is or what she’s doing.

Here’s an example: when Dr. Stone first disconnects from a large piece of her ship, launching herself into space alone, we see her spinning upside down over and over and over. When the camera reaches her, she’s still spinning. And we know that because this is space, she’ll spin until something stops her. For a few moments, Cuarón holds Dr. Stone in the frame as she spins up and down, which can have a dizzying effect on us. But as Cuarón pushes his camera in, we start spinning with Dr. Stone, which completely eliminates any sense of confusion. Most any director would cut from the master shot of Dr. Stone spinning, to the audience spinning along with her. Not Cuarón. He knows that by holding a shot in real time, we can fully understand what’s happening, and share in Dr. Stone’s fear. 
But game-changing cinematography and patient editing will only take a movie so far. It’s the heart of the thing that matters. And I’ll be the first to admit, as someone who remains utterly baffled by her Oscar win for The Blind Side, I was nervous about Bullock’s ability to carry the film. But as Dr. Stone, Bullock delivers what will be remembered as some the best, most courageous acting of her career. Bullock has been quick to note that this was not an easy film to shoot, but her frustrations on set have clearly paid off. I loved everything about her tortured performance.

Alfonso Cuarón is one of the leading innovators of the cinematic game. He hasn’t made many films, but all of them are different and important. Whether he’s adapting Dickens, tracking Harry Potter, or following two young men on a sexual odyssey, there’s something about human nature that Cuarón is so obviously drawn to. And, because of his interest, he’s able to translate the best and worst of who we are onto the screen exquisitely. Gravity is the technological achievement of a lifetime. But it’s also a damn smart film that never forces its intentions on us. Rather, it kindly asks us to enjoy the ride, but pay attention while doing so. Gladly. A

26 comments:

  1. ME... WANT... TO... SEE... THIS... Oh wait, I will be seeing it this weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  2. It's a good one. However, I can't say I loved it. There. I am done. Good review my man.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Just wow. Them effects just took things to a new level! I figured it would be good based on the director but I wasn't too keen on Bullock but man o man does she pull it off with aplomb. I can't think of a movie I've seen with her in it that I've really enjoyed but you are certainly correct, she reveals great depth here - hopefully she or someone around her is smart enough to capitalize on this and get her a couple of roles where she can actually "act".

    If Before Midnight was the most charmed I've been while watching a film this year and Prisoners was the most thrilling, than this was definitely the most tense/nail biting film I've seen in quite some time. Although the overarching plot is easy enough to figure out and is simple enough, that never provided any sort of release from my hands gripping the armrests for the entire portion of the film. If nothing else, I have yet to think of another movie that has kept me so nervous for it's entire length as this one did.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes! So glad you liked this one as much as me. I agree all the way, this is a nail biter of a film if there ever was one. 90 minutes of pure tension. And Bullock... who knew?

      Delete
  4. Damn, I want to see it so bad, so I can read the review cause I'm still doing the "haven't seen, want to see, don't read the review" thing.. I have a lot of weird rules for a movie blogger. :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh that's not weird at all. I don't watch trailers of read reviews before seeing a film. I like to go in as fresh as possible. Hope you enjoy the film!

      Delete
  5. The cinematography was amazing. Space looked beautiful, and I loved the detail. I liked how certain scenes were shown. One of my favorites was when Bullock couldn't get the shuttle to start, and she was very frustrated and the whole scene was very noisy, when it suddenly cuts to the same scene, but instead of being with her, we're looking at it from space. It's a visually stunning film.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hell yeah, I loved that scene as well. Just that simple cut to outside the ship as she's flipping out said so much. A stunning film indeed.

      Delete
  6. Im glad to see that Bullock does a good job with this movie, because I was nervous about her in this. I guess I will have to sell some blood if I want to see this in Imax

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ha seriously. It's no easy penny to see this in IMAX 3D, but films like Gravity are why that format exists in the first place. It's definitely worth it.

      Delete
  7. Wonderful review. Just saw it, and it might be my new favorite of the year so far. It's one of the best experiences I've ever had at the cinema.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks man, this one really blew me away. It'll definitely be one of my favorite of the year. Can't wait for your review.

      Delete
  8. Fantastic review! I really cannot wait to see this movie. I'm not usually happy about 3D but here it really looks like the only way to go. And it's so great that the film's visuals appear to be surrounding the core which is the story. It's very rare when it happens.

    Also $80 million budget? Wow, I thought it cost at least twice as much!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! $80 mil... isn't that nuts? And trust me, 3D is the way with this one. It's stunning.

      Delete
  9. This film is tremendous. I like that there are moments where you experience complete quietude and then the film invigorates the fuck out of you. Definitely one of the greats of the year.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hell yeah. Completely agree. It so perfectly knew when to be calm and when to shake the hell out of things. A remarkable film.

      Delete
  10. The number of cuts is incredible for a movie today.where did you get that figure? It's hard to believe you could count them while you are watching this white knuckle film.The whole theme of rebirth is handled in a subtle way despite being front and center for so many sequences.I believed Bullock in every scene, she manages a difficult journey.The Imax 3d was worth the twenty bucks I dropped per ticket.a great review.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That cut figure was all over their press materials. They are appropriately boasting all about it, and hell, why not? It's a sensational feat.

      No way in hell I could keep count during the movie. It's just too damn good!

      Delete
  11. Great film. What you said about it being an experience rather than a film was my take as well! I had a few minor issues with it as a film, but as an experience it's truly powerful. Good review man.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks! This one really engulfed me... "experience" was the only word I could think of. I loved it.

      Delete
  12. I totally agree with you. Not only was it visually breathtaking, but also emotionally moving. I'd be happy for this to win Best Picture.

    Great review Alex :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Ben! Loved this damn movie. Bullock impressed the hell out of me.

      Delete
  13. As an immersive cinematic experience, Gravity is quite incredible. In terms of storytelling, however, it isn't quite out of this world.

    ReplyDelete