Gravity

[Sideshow Spock]

SECOND - if you want to make a space shuttle disaster film there are scripts waiting to be written to tell the story of Challenger or Columbia Real events we should never forget

That's what you took away from the film? That it's a "space shuttle disaster film"? Why isn't it an ISS disaster film? Or a Hubble disaster film? Or the Chinese station? That debris took out everything!

They were all just players in a fantastic story of human survival.

[Sideshow Spock]

You are right on all accounts here...it's the leading contender for Best Picture so far..

12 Years a Slave might beg to differ..

[MegoCapnMike]

I am uncertain as to how the premise is "offensive" exactly. If they had Clooney breaking the fourth wall and yelling racial slurs at the audience, i would consider that offensive. I figure the story was set before the shuttles were taken out of service. With the "offensive" logic, you could say that the ISS being destroyed should be offensive as well because the movie shows it destroyed but it is still there in real life. When the movie started and I saw the shuttle I thought, hey they don't use those anymore, but then I just rolled with it. It wasn't trying to be a 100% real life story or even a visual one in my opinion. I felt the whole film was strictly about life and death more than anything else. The special effects (while plentiful) were only a tool to tell the story that was there. The movie has depth, you just have to realize that depth does not always mean convoluted back story. I see her kid's accident being on one end of the spectrum and her potential death being on the other. Her kid died in a simple meaningless way. Ryan is facing a much more intense and complicated situation where she may end up dying. At one point she decides to give up, but then comes back fighting. I would say the main connection to the audience is in no way the back story. That just makes you feel bad for Ryan on top of her situation. The connection to the audience I feel was the fear of falling and helplessness.

Not wanting to get into a debate, so this will be my only post on this. Just thought I'd put my two cents in.

[Bionicfanboy66]

From my understanding the film has gotten quite a bit of praise from the folks at NASA. Probably the best film I've seen this year. Good change of pace from other films that are bogged down with overkill usage of character development or having to explain every little story detail. Save that stuff for the novelizations.

[jds1911a1]

MegoCapnMike when i say offensive I don't mean in the modern politically correct way that there was some offeding remark in the film or I was insulted becasue how a race or nationality was portrayed.
I mean the whole premise offends me personally, that they chose to invent a space diasaster story when there were 2 real space disasters in the shuttle program where good people died, no more no less. I have not seen the film only the clips in the commercials eventually I'm sure I won't be able to escape it. Obviously by the box office #'s I am very much in the minority but thats how I feel

[Brazoo]

I just saw this tonight and thought it was fantastic. A great thriller - my arm still hurts from my wife's clinging and clawing.

A couple of times I was pulled out for a few seconds because of a couple of plot points, but the setting, tone and effects are so great it's not even worth discussing those minor irks. I can't think of a recent movie that comes anywhere close to making space travel this exciting and frightening.

Having said that, the 19 and 16 year old girls that joined us were bored stiff. Sigh...

[Brazoo]

I find the premise offensive.
First off the last shuttle flight was 2 years ago so by that alone it diminishes the gravitas (pun intended) of gravity. It's like they had to wait till the last one was in a museum before they even thought about making it (I know Endevor only ended up in California in January and it was probably shot last year blah blah blah) another special effects masterpiece with minimal plot
SECOND - if you want to make a space shuttle disaster film there are scripts waiting to be written to tell the story of Challenger or Columbia Real events we should never forget (and sadly I saw both of them), and if you want a triumph like Apollo 13 (historically and as a film) there probably are untold stories of scary events in the shuttle program that could be used as a basis for a script

the CGI may be better today but I doubt this film will be thought of the way Appollo 13 is 20 years later

That's a surprising and unique perspective for sure! I don't mean for that to sound offensive and no disrespect intended. I'm just surprised.

I actually thought the movie payed genuine and heart felt homage to the Challenger and the Columbia in the sense that I think it captures how incredible/insane/horrifying actual space exploration is, but I also felt it worked as a direct allegory for why we continue with space exploration after those tragedies. To me that's what the whole movie was about; honouring the people we lost by continuing their dream - same way Bullock's character chose to "go on" despite the loss of her daughter.

As a fellow space exploration enthusiast I'm sorry you didn't enjoy it.

EDIT: I see now in your other post that you haven't seen the movie yet.

[drquest]

I finally got to see this tonight. My 11 year old son, and my 14 year old daughter and her friend all went.

Wow a visually stunning movie! There's not a lot of down time in this movie, it just keeps throwing one thing after another at you. The pacing really was done well, and I was dropped right into a space suit with them for the duration. There's not a lot of movies that can pull me in, but this one did!

I don't want to give anything away, but my absolute favorite scene was when she was working on releasing the parachute from the Soyuz and the ISS is being decimated behind her and she has no idea.

Good stuff!