Gravity - Review and Discussion Thread

Discussion in 'Science Fiction & Fantasy' started by PlainSimpleJoel, Oct 2, 2013.

?

Grading

Poll closed Jan 10, 2014.
  1. A+

    42.7%
  2. A

    34.1%
  3. A-

    12.2%
  4. B+

    7.3%
  5. B

    2.4%
  6. B-

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  7. C+

    1.2%
  8. C

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  9. C-

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  10. D

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  11. F

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  1. PlainSimpleJoel

    PlainSimpleJoel Fleet Admiral Premium Member

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    [​IMG]

    Currently on RottenTomatoes it's at 97%

    I'm seeing this tomorrow, as I'm rather excited about it. I'll decide where I'll see it. And then maybe again in imax over the weekend, if I can get myself down to Sydney for it.
     
  2. JarodRussell

    JarodRussell Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I was spoiled about the ending in today's newspaper review. But I'm still going to see it.
     
  3. Morpheus 02

    Morpheus 02 Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Chicago IL
    Can someone do me a favor...can someone post a non-spoilery review that can let me know the following:

    Should we see it in 3-D and/or IMAX (is the combo the best, or if either one really enhances the movie).

    Is it OK for an 8 year old to see? The PG-13 rating says (to me) that it's OK for a teenager to see it by themselves, but a parent should be present for a younger child. As an example -- the Avengers movie i think was a great family film (for us). We can't get babysitting, so just wondering if it's worth taking my child.

    Thanks!
     
  4. marillion

    marillion Vice Admiral Admiral

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    I'm bummed... I really want to see this, but the family is cold on the prospect.. I'm not much of lone movie-goer, so I guess this will have to wait... I don't really have any friends I see movies with... Blah.. Boo Hoo me..
     
  5. PlainSimpleJoel

    PlainSimpleJoel Fleet Admiral Premium Member

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    Absolutely. I'm seeing it 3D this afternoon. I could attended another screening this morning, but going for the biggest screen in Newcastle. I wish there was an IMAX here, but thinking of heading to Sydney for that.
     
  6. OdoWanKenobi

    OdoWanKenobi Admiral Admiral

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    I'm going to see it this weekend for sure. I've been looking forward to this film really since I heard Alfonso Cuaron. The great reviews have just been increasing my anticipation. Seriously, if anyone has not seen Children of Men, go fix that right freaking now.
     
  7. sojourner

    sojourner Admiral In Memoriam

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    Just around the bend.
    I read there is a bit of bad science with the resolution.
     
  8. PlainSimpleJoel

    PlainSimpleJoel Fleet Admiral Premium Member

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    Wow - just wow. I won't go into what happens, but it's amazing. Gonna need to see it again this weekend (hopefully), depends on how I go with tafe stuff. Maybe on Monday, with it being a public holiday here. Easily an A+. Bullock deserves an Oscar nomination for this performance.
     
  9. JarodRussell

    JarodRussell Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Just the nomination? ;)
     
  10. chrisspringob

    chrisspringob Commodore Commodore

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    Just got back from seeing it, and was incredibly impressed.

    I don't think this thread belongs in SF/F though, since this movie isn't really SF/F. ;)
     
  11. chrisspringob

    chrisspringob Commodore Commodore

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    She's great, but it's a survival movie. I don't really see it as the kind of performance that's likely to win it for her. Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine is much more in the vein of a winning Best Actress performance.
     
  12. Warped9

    Warped9 Admiral Admiral

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    I really want to see this, but I'm not keen on seeing it in 3D. I don't care for 3D and it can give me a headache. I'm going to inquire at my local cinema if they'll be screening a 2D version within a week or so---they've been known to do that.
     
  13. Agent Richard07

    Agent Richard07 Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
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    Grade: A

    - It wasn't the most tense movie I've ever seen but it was pretty gripping (no pun intended) and above all, it was visually stunning. It was nice to see an entire movie with the characters right there in space and in zero gravity.

    - Sandra Bullock was damn sexy. And I'm not just talking about the tank top and spandex shorts. She carried herself well as a consummate scientist and astronaut in extremis and carried the movie itself just as well as an almost one-woman show. And just the wonder of seeing her in space... Floating with no suit on... A human out of their element. You have to see the movie to appreciate what I'm talking about.

    - Bad science? I'm not equipped to talk about that, but one thing did get my attention... I don't think that a fire extinguisher is strong enough to serve as thrust for a person flying through space.

    - It seemed a little too convenient that the shuttle and the various space stations were close to each other and therefore easy to reach, but I guess that was necessary for the plot.

    - I was wondering in which order the actors' names would appear in the billing since Clooney is a big star but Bullock was the main character. Then I saw what compromise they made. I'm seeing what they did more and more these days when the big star isn't really the lead character.

    There's more I'd love to talk about but I don't want to spoil too much. Spoilerish tease ahead... All I'll say is that there's a scene where a hatch is opened when Bullock's character doesn't have her helmet on and that was something.

    I see your point, but at the same time, it does feel like the very definition of science fiction.
     
  14. chrisspringob

    chrisspringob Commodore Commodore

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    My comment was tongue in cheek, simply because we tend to play fast and loose with what counts as SF/F here. If James Bond counts, then this should too.

    However, to be serious about it, I really don't think this counts as science fiction. It's a drama set in space, but does that automatically make it science fiction? Doesn't there have to be a speculative element to the science in order for it to be science fiction? Would a movie about deep sea diving (set in the present day, with real world science) be science fiction? Would Cast Away be classified as science fiction? Would Contagion be classified as science fiction?
     
  15. Agent Richard07

    Agent Richard07 Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
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    Another plot contrivance…

    I don't get why Clooney's character had to let go and die in space. Seemed more like something they did just to get him out of the way.

    I was reading some of the comments about the ending at the IMDb...

    "You missed the part where Sandra Bullock gets attacked by a tiger on the beach and gets eaten."

    "The film actually ends with Sandra Bullock collapsing from exhaustion and dying after being left to the elements for seven days. Serbian children find her bloated corpse washed ashore and poke at it with a stick. G R A V I T Y"

    "It would have ended better if Matt's flaming body landed on her."

    :rommie:

    As for the 3D, it wasn't essential but it looked good. Fortunately it didn't have that pop-up book look.

    Ah yeah, I seem to be taking a lot of these comments too seriously these days. :o

    Deep Sea Diving: I'd say no, unles it dealt with a truly compelling "what if" scenario.
    Cast Away: No.
    Contagion: I'm leaning towards yes.

    With Gravity, it's a fine line. I can go either way. I don't have much to support the scifi argument outside of it feeling scifi-ish because of its "what if" scenario in a still relatively new frontier.
     
  16. trevanian

    trevanian Rear Admiral

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    Oct 14, 2004
    EVERY action causes that opposite reaction ... I remember reading a Clarke novel, ISLANDS IN THE SKY, where somebody maneuvers inside a huge zero-g space by first throwing his clothes away and later spitting his way across. I imagine a fire extinguisher would provide a lot more than that.


    I just wish I wasn't sick as a dog, I've been waiting YEARS to see this movie (I watch CHILDREN OF MEN a couple times per year, it's my fave for this century thus far), it's the only flick I've felt I needed to see in a cinema in a very long while. I felt that way before AND after talking to the director and cinematographer and vfx super about the show (ICG magazine will probably have my making-of article up online pretty soon if they don't already.)
     
  17. Base_Delta_Zero

    Base_Delta_Zero Commodore Commodore

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    A

    Excellent film. Sandra Bullock rocks it as the protagonist (and she looks friggin buff). Visually amazing. Saw it in 2D. Still stunning imagery. There are several gruesome deaths and corpses shown, so I wouldn't take my 8 year old but that's up to you, I guess. Great use of sound and silence, characters were enjoyable and believable. Tech seemed all real world. For the most part the science seemed right to me, except for maybe the last bit of the climax, but whatever. At least people weren't popping like balloons ala Outland. NASA thinks it's got problems now? The movie's NASA is boned. Game over, man. Game over.

    Gripping, exciting, survival character piece. My favorite space flick since Moon. And to have the entire film take place in zero-g, I think, may be a first. No flashbacks, no ground control. You're with the astronauts until the end.
     
  18. Ensign_Redshirt

    Ensign_Redshirt Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Aug 3, 2007
    Best science fiction film I've seen this year.

    I'd describe it as very "hard" SF... I suppose the "science fiction" element in the movie is the depiction of how a Kessler effect and the impact (no pun intended :p ) on astronauts in orbit could look like: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kessler_syndrome

    Technically, it's also a bit of a disaster film (...IN SPACE).
     
    Last edited: Oct 5, 2013
  19. CaptainCanada

    CaptainCanada Admiral Admiral

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    Amazing. Up there with Blue Jasmine as the best the year has had to offer so far (2013 has been meager to this point, but we're finally getting the good stuff).

    Question: How many people in your theatres thought it really was Matt when he showed up again? I was momentarily thrown off by the sheer audacity of it, before it became clear what it was.
     
  20. Admiral2

    Admiral2 Admiral Admiral

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    Langley
    A+ on just the visuals alone, which are "O-M-F-G-areyouseeingthisshit???" - stunning.

    I will not comment on the science. I'm not in the mood for that kind of debate anymore.

    Kudos to Sandra Bullock for pulling off what is essentially "Cast Away In Space." (Honorable Mention to mister Clooney in the role of "Wil-son!") My only complaint will be about Sandra's fear/impact grunting, which grated after the first hundred times. (Hah!Hah!Hah!Nonononono!Hah!Hah!Haaaah!)

    On the 3-D front, see it in 3-D. It will not be money wasted. The visuals demand it.