Gravity (2013)

I am in complete awe of Gravity, the masterpiece of cinema from Alfonso Cuaron starring George Clooney, charming as ever, and a show-stopping performance by Sandra Bullock. Never have I been moved so deeply by a single actress on screen, displaying raw emotion that immediately causes me to connect with the character.

I don't need to go into the story because the premise itself is all that you should know going into this movie. Bullock plays a doctor who is working on the Hubble satellite when debris from a Russian satellite causes herself and her crew to be separated in the vast expanse of space. It's realistic, edge-of-your-seat entertainment and brilliant storytelling. I've said it probably a dozen times this weekend, but if you can see this film in 3D, do so! It's not a gimmick. It's designed entirely for this experience. Count the number of cutaway shots in this film. I dare you. There are hardly any! It's immersive in 3D in the fact that your eye isn't forced to readjust every ten seconds to a new shot with new depth perception. It's the way the technology was designed to be used.

I also have to comment on the storytelling aspect of this film. The characters are phenomenal. There is just enough hinted at of their previous lives back on earth to make us empathize with them and root for them to fight their way to safety in the perilous reaches of space. Cuaron is to be commended for researching everything down to the very alarm systems that an astronaut would hear in every situation. Speaking of sound, the score is entirely appropriate and haunting.

If Bullock doesn't get a nomination let alone the Oscar for her performance it will be a real shame because this is a role that she took to the highest level in order to make everything else in the film believable. The film asks us to think about things such as life and death, as well as the choice to live and the choice to give up. What are the pros and cons of each? Which one is easier, and which one would you as an audience member choose were you in these astronaut's places?

One thing's for sure - I have a greater appreciation for the men and women who courageously have ventured into space to create the technology that we use on a daily basis.