Filmmaker Stephen Sommers (“The Mummy,” “Van Helsing”) cobbles movies together from the spare parts of other, better pictures.
First time director Duncan Jones does the same with his new film, “Moon,” but manages to make an original statement despite his major recycling project.
“Moon” borrows liberally from “Alien,” “2001″ and “Blade Runner” to forge an actor’s showcase for Sam Rockwell.
As if the idiosyncratic thesp needed one.
Rockwell plays Sam, the lone employee on a space station designed to mine rocks from the moon. Those rocks possess valuable energy components needed back on earth, and Sam is near the end of his three-year mission to scoop up as many as possible before heading home.
Sam isn’t exactly alone. He keeps a running conversation up with GERTY (voiced by Kevin Spacey), the computer in charge of the space station. Comparisons to “2001’s” HAL are inevitable, but “Moon” makes the device its own by letting GERTY communicate with a series of smiley face icons.
That simple touch adds an extra layer of humor – and humanity – to the production.
His reunion with his wife and daughter back on earth gets sidetracked when a curious stranger enters the picture, someone who makes us question the reality of what’s happening on screen.
What follows is a meditation on loneliness as well as yet another slam against the corporate mindset.
But Rockwell keeps you invested every step of the way, even when it becomes clear we’re watching an extended “Twilight Zone” episode. He’s always a mercurial presence on screen, but here he invests Sam with an ordinariness that trumps his eclectic veneer.
Sam even watches “Mary Tyler Moore” reruns to stave off boredom.
“Moon” can be laborious to watch at times. The tricky plot could have been rendered in a tight hour’s time, rather than the film’s 97 running time.
But when the puzzle pieces finally snap into place we’re left with a vision of the future truly worth seeing.
(Photo: Sam Rockwell plays an isolated astronaut in “Moon.”/Sony Pictures Classics)
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{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Charlie’s Angels would have been worth it if Crispin Glover and Rockwell blew up Liu, Barrymore and Diaz in the end – just saying.
As would Iron Man if they’d iced Goop Paltrow in a similar fashion…
Never did understand Paltrow’s appeal. I think she’s terribly overrated, though I found her to be somewhat likable in Iron Man playing the straight secretary crush. Of course, how hard is it to be likable when you have Robert Downey Jr. bouncing lines to and from.
“Moon” borrows liberally from “Alien,” “2001? and “Blade Runner” to forge an actor’s showcase for Sam Rockwell.
While I won’t disagree with your statement, if they were going to steal from any old sci-fi’s I’m glad they chose good ones. I, however, refrained from using the “Blade Runner” reference in my review… just saying.
I think it’s hard to find a completely new, unique sci-fi these days. Everyone’s re-examining the same ideas and personally, I thought this one did it brilliantly. And I was never bored – not one minute. But maybe this just means I’m boring? hm.
MOON is much closer to classic and contemporary written hard science fiction than anything else. It’s certainly a lot better than OUTLAND, which is one of the worst SF films ever, but which Jones bizarrely seems to think is one of the best. Actually, the movie which MOON reminds me the most of is FORBIDDEN PLANET, very cerebral, with a great sense of mystery.
I’m reading this review in March 2011…but steal? nah.
more like pay homage to. SILENT RUNNING is also a major source of inspiration here.
I love the special effects in this movie, especially on the big screen.
who knew physical models (and not CGI ones) could be so nifty?