Just last week I went out to see Gravity, the movie that is claimed to be the best cinematic use of 3D along with the film that will change cinematography forever. I was fortunate enough to see it in IMAX, and experience the movie in the best 3D currently available, and kept both these claims in mind while I was staring at the screen through the plastic lenses that had to be awkwardly jammed over my prescription glasses. I was there to answer one question: does Gravity live up to its hype?
Absolutely yes.
Gravity is the definitive movie of this year, the movie that leaves you with an impact like no other. It is an aesthetic marvel, immersing you into the depth of the cosmos, and leaving you with the awe that only space can inspire. It is Apollo 13 for the era of the space shuttle and international space travel, and kept me on the edge of my seat for the entire ninety minutes or so it ran.
The best thing about Gravity is that it is not entirely implausible. Yes, some minor details are inconsistent with real events, such as the height of the orbits of the International Space Station and the Hubble Space Telescope, or the angle of descent for the Chinese Soyuz clone. However, this is all in artistic liberty; the physics in the movie are as accurate as possible, as I will testify.
The environment itself traps you with Sandra Bullock's character as she deals with her own, internal struggles as she fights for survival against the fatality of space. She is forced to face death right in the eye, and stare at morality head on, having to recognize the morality of her existence as she possibly approaches her deathbed.
This is science fiction at its greatest, holding the audience is suspense while telling a powerful story about perseverance in spite of absurdity, with the ultimate fate of humanity providing the backdrop.
This is why I write science fiction.
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