347 miles above the solid ground of earth are Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) and Matt Kowalski (George Clooney), two astronauts working on repairing a malfunctioning part of the Hubble Space Telescope. After a catastrophic event that puts the mission in jeopardy, Dr. Stone and Kowalski try as fast as they can to quickly get back to the safety of the space shuttle, but it’s too late. They lose radio contact with Houston, and the two astronauts are thrown around sending Dr. Stone outward into the dark depths of space. Dr. Stone and Kowalski now have a new mission: survive and get back to earth safely without drifting away into the abyss of space never to be heard from again.
Buckle up your seat belts for Gravity; it’s quite the crazy ride. Gravity definitely has spot on special effects. Alfonso and his special effects team really out did themselves by capturing the movement of particles in space. Anytime the characters would look down at earth or look up at the stars, it felt like you were looking out into space or down onto earth in real life. It was just gorgeous. A real fantastic spectacle for the eyes. Sandra Bullock definitely acted spot on. A lot of people doubt her acting capabilities, but Gravity really shows what she can do. George Clooney didn't act badly by any means whatsoever; it just seemed that he wasn’t really acting at all. He was just kind of being George Clooney, which is never a bad thing. No? If you met George for a drink some Saturday night he would probably act the same way as he did in Gravity. It definitely did not take away from the film in any way, it was just something my friends and I noticed. Alfonso Cuaron was brilliant when making Gravity. A lot of work went into it. When he was filming, he had to measure out each scene to look as authentic as possible. He worked really well with the actors and special effects team to make it the most visually entertaining and gorgeous film for us. Alfonso Cuaron really knows what needs to be done when making a film. There is sadness, happiness, and loneliness all right there for you in Gravity throughout the entirety of the film.
I’m normally not the one racing to the 3D theater, but this time I thought, "Heck, why not see this movie in 3D? It looks like it could be fun." I was correct. I’m not sure if it was because I saw it at the IMAX, or if Alfonso Cuaron just knows how to make a 3D movie. Either way, I was definitely pleased with the choice to pay the extra money to see it in 3D. The action sequences were not overpowering, and there were not too many things flying off the screen at your face. When there were, it didn't feel forced because they were in space. Also, it did not make me feel sick.
It's Thanksgiving morning. Keller Dover (Hugh Jackman), his
wife, son and young daughter are going to eat a Thanksgiving Day meal with
Franklin Birch (Terrance Howard) and his wife, and two daughters. Before the
meal, the four kids go on a walk in the neighborhood, and a
mysterious RV is parked outside a house. The young girls think it is very cool
and start to play on it. After being pulled off it unwillingly by
Keller's son, they head back to the house to feast on all the great
food that is prepared for Thanksgiving. After the meal, the families are
lounging, and the two young girls decide to go play outside, this
time going without the guidance of their older siblings. A few hours
pass, and the girls don’t return. Keller and Franklin set out to look for them.
After Keller’s son tells him about the weird RV in the neighborhood, they
call the police. Detective Loki (Jake Gyllenhaal), a cop who has solved
every case he has ever been assigned, is tasked to find the two little
girls. After an arrest on Alex Jones (Paul Dano), the family thinks they
can rest a little easier. However, no charges are made on Alex, and
forty-eight hours later, he is released. Keller, who is distraught
over his missing daughter, decides to take matters into his own hands, while
detective Loki follows other leads he has come across.
Make
sure to bring a jacket to this one. It's cold, and not just outside. Prisoners
had this whole dark, wet, cold theme going on the whole time. For instance, it
was raining for most of the film. Prisoners has really good acting throughout
its entirety; I definitely would not be surprised to see Hugh Jackman and Jake
Gyllenhaal get nominated for their rolls this coming award season. Jackman
really brought out the inner chaos of what a father would go through if
something like this were to happen to his child. Gyllenhaal seemed like an
icecold Brooklyn detective who had a lot of emotion invested in finding the two
missing girls. The story was really well told; I was shivering on the edge of my
seat the entire time. At times one may think that it takes a weird turn in to
something you might not like but it all comes out to one hell of a ride. The
score for Prisoners did not stand out to me as something that is making the
scene more intense. It was the acting that really made me feel how suspenseful
this movie really was. This is something that is very hard to do; not a lot of
movies can pull this off. Argo, for example, pulled this off last year.
Prisoners is definitely worth a watch, whether you choose to see it in a
theater or rent it. Seeing it on TV one afternoon would definitely take away
from the story.
