Ralph's Movie Reviews: GRAVITY

Friday, October 18, 2013

GRAVITY

Space drama

PRINCIPAL CAST MEMBERS

Sandra Bullock: Mission Specialist Dr. Ryan Stone

George Clooney: Mission Commander Lieutenant Matt Kowalski

REVIEW

This one warrants seeing it in 3D to truly experience the sensation of being out in space. The images are nothing short of spectacular. But that is not the only thing going for it: the acting by Sandra Bullock is probably the best she has ever done. She is on screen probably 95% of the time and does a really superb job.

So it is more than just a run-of-the-mill story about the dangers that can be encountered when in Earth’s orbit and the struggle to stay alive. You feel like you are there, watching things unfold.

This movie is sure to win awards if for nothing else than being able to create the weightlessness of space.

CLASSIFICATION

for intense perilous sequences, some disturbing images and brief strong language.

FOR NITPICKERS ONLY

The on-screen title makes reference to the conditions in space 600 kilometres in altitude but the Hubble Space Telescope they are working on is just 559 km above the earth’s surface.

1 comment:

Unknown said...: Some of the screen shots with their smooth blending from one view of an image to the next view from a different angle (eg from outside a space suit to the view inside the suit looking out) are just seamless and absolutely amazing!; November 18, 2013 at 4:56 PM

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my ratings system

I've always thought that telling too much about a movie or warning someone about a "twist" at the end deprives the person the pleasure of seeing it as it unfolds, so I don’t do it. You may not always agree with my rating of course, but at least it is an unbiased opinion unlike some of the full time professional reviewers who are on the studio’s payroll.

A few movies you won’t see any review from me:

Scary movies: I’m the world’s biggest chicken and just hate getting the crap scared out of me. I can handle an unexpected door slam, that kind of thing, but a movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat…not for me. Sorry.
Movies geared to the young teen and pre-teen crowd with dialog comprising mostly of crude remarks, awful jokes and lots of rude, socially unacceptable body noises. "The Spy that Shagged Me" comes to mind. (I wonder if the kids know what the British verb to shag someone really means? They probably do; I bet you it’s the parents who haven’t a clue).
Sometimes Hollywood gets on a roll and they produce a series of movies that are all very much alike. For example movies about the CIA were very popular and so we had The Bourne Identity and Bad Company and The Sum of All Fears. They all had the same basic theme and it becomes repetitive. I will see some, but not all of them.

FYI this is my rating system:

0 stars = Terrible: so bad it’s not worth talking about; in fact, I’d pay you not to go
= Lousy: I actually got up and walked out before the end it was just that bad (no kidding)
= Not so good: thought about walking out but hung in just in case it got better (but it didn’t)
= A so-so good movie: I enjoyed it somewhat but wasn’t all that crazy about it
= A really good movie: I recommend seeing it
= An excellent movie you just got to see! I suggest you put it on your "To Do List" it’s that good.

some favourite websites

For those into it, Nitpickers at

has more movie mistakes than you could ever imagine. My contributions can be seen if you check out the Nitpickers Registry and click on the link Nitpickers Listed by Nitpicker Number, select the group 45,401 - 45,500 and drill down to number 45411. Although I have 56 nitpicks to my credit, some have almost 2,000. You wonder sometimes where they find the time to do it.