Gravity

 

 

 

Expectations:



During my freshman year of college, I took two astronomy classes, to satisfy my general science requirements in my degree plan. Most people just settle for a simple biology class, but I chose astronomy! A bit of an odd choice, you might say, considering that I am a business major. However, I have a strange, unexplainable fascination with space... not the Hollywood version of space, made possible by Star Trek, Alien, and Star Wars, but rather the simplistic version that you find in the backyard in your small, unlit town of 2,000 people, in southern Mississippi. It's about the real, awe-inspiring images and views that display the simple elegance of God's vast and beautiful creation. Few things are more elegant, and the university offered me the ability to learn about my fascination, while gaining useful credit hours. In fact, when I was young, it was my dream to become the "President of NASA" (or whatever its equivalent title may be). I remember telling people my dream, and they would immediately direct their discussion to my "obvious" desire to become an astronaut and go to outer space. I would entertain these comments with an "Are you crazy?" or a good ole "Heck No!". There is no way that I would EVER allow my own being to be shot into the sky at hundreds of miles per hour. That is insane! And, after watching the many nerve-racking trailers for Gravity, I was pretty certain that this film would solidify my lack of desire to be shot into space. Additionally, I thought it might decrease my desire to be shot into the movie theater, as it just looked boring. Then... the reviews! The only 2013 film that I have heard more praise about is Before Midnight, which I have yet to see. Honestly, I couldn't believe how well-received Gravity had been. Most films that rely heavily on a visual impression fail to succeed with some audiences, which is why I couldn't wrap my head around the 98% on the Tomatometer. So, in order to increase my understanding, I decided I should go watch Gravity.

Plot:
Sometimes simplistic drama is better than the most complex film ever made, and Gravity utilizes that simplicity better than any film I've ever seen. Usually, I tend to hate films with very little dialogue and films with too big of an emphasis on visual effects, but that was not the case with Gravity. Scientifically, I don't know how likely all of the events in the film are to happen. I mean, I highly doubt this story has a chance of ever becoming true. I don't know if I've ever seen a film that involved so much good luck and bad luck, all within minutes of one another. Because of the extremities of the good and bad, I was on the edge of my seat, hoping for the best and expecting the worst. I apologize for my brevity in plot explanation, but I don't really know how to go about analyzing the storyline, without giving too much away to those of you who have yet to see the film. I will say that if you want something deep and confusing, go watch Prometheus or something. Gravity is perfectly simple enough to keep you entirely intrigued, while allowing you to appreciate the amazing visuals.

Characters:
As expected, Gravity was a total Clooney-Bullock show, and both of them did a great job. Clooney's Matt Kowalski was basically real-life Clooney... but in space. On the other hand, Bullock's Ryan Stone was an amazing character who gave a perfect reflection of on-earth problems... but in space. I never expected the self-reflective moments that Stone brought on, as they were really special to watch. If Bullock truly earned an Oscar with her performance in The Blind Side, she deserves three for her performance in Gravity.

Conclusion:
If I can tell you one thing, after watching Gravity, it's that I made a good decision to never, EVER pursue going to space. Don't get me wrong... it's great! But, I don't want debris flying at me at zero-gravity. That's insane! Nevertheless, because of my sheer fascination with space, Gravity's visuals were some of the most impressive that I have ever seen. I don't think I've been as impressed with a 3D experience since Avatar "blessed" us with such amazing technology. What made Gravity a bit more impressive than Avatar was director Alfonso Cuaron's ability to create such an amazing world, without actually creating a new world. Rarely do we see 3D movies that are grounded in reality. There was nothing in Gravity that felt unreal, aside from the fact that it was all happening at one time, and I think that's what impressed me the most. If you will go into the theater and allow yourself to truly experience Gravity for all that it is, I promise that your heart will begin to race, just as mine did. I give Gravity 3.76 out of 5 stars.

The Ides of March

Expectations:
In case you haven't heard, there is a lot of Oscar hype over The Ides of March. I personally think it's just because this has been such a bad year for movies in general. Many of you may be of the mind that the Oscars only ever like stupid movies that no one watches, and you are certainly entitled to your own opinion. I would personally like to encourage you to watch the movies that are Oscar-worthy this year. Don't complain about no one watching them if you are one of the ones that is not watching them. With that being said, I went to watch this movie because I wanted to see whether it really was Oscar-worthy. The cast is obviously star-studded, and, with Clooney directing, it promised to at least have a brain. The Oscar hype set my expectations high.

Plot:
The trailer made it clear that there was some kind of something that was going on behind the curtains with The Ides of March, but I must say that I was surprised at how much this changed things. I thought this was just going to be a simple story. Turns out, I was very very wrong. I certainly didn't see all of the twists and turns coming. The plot is very complex and really shows how screwed up politics can be (In case you didn't know, they don't always tell the truth). There were a few awkward moments in the film, but, overall, it was complex, original, and fun.

Best Scene: There is one giant twist in the movie that sort of lights ten billion small fires. I obviously won't tell you what happens, but it's pretty cool.

Characters:
The cast of this film was amazing. It was very hard for me to find glitches as far as the cast is concerned. Clooney did a great job of directing, but he did an even better job of letting the rest of the cast take the spotlight. The movie wasn't really about the presidential candidates, but rather the people behind the scenes. I am a huge West Wing fan, and this movie is kind of like the drama of that entire series rolled into two hours. If you are pretty dumb in the area of politics, you might think these characters a bit dramatic. Unfortunately, politicians have many secrets and plenty of drama, so do not be fooled. Phillip Seymour Hoffman redeemed himself after a horrible performance in Moneyball, and Paul Giamatti was great as well.

Best Character: Ryan Gosling was brilliant as Stephen Meyers, a smart, savvy, young campaign manager. It wasn't obvious in the previews, but Gosling is THE main character. I rarely think that the main character does a good enough job to be recognized, but Gosling did phenomenal.

Worst Character: The only character that seemed out of place was this random intern that they threw into the end of the movie. I think she was supposed to be a symbol of how easily people can be replaced, especially in politics. I'm not big on having to interpret what's going on in a movie, so I didn't much care for that.

Conclusion:
This was one of the most unpredictable movies that I have seen in a long time. Also, it has been a while since I have seen a performance as good as that of Ryan Gosling's, in a lead role at least. The problem is that I didn't get an Oscar feel while watching. If you haven't noticed, 2011 has been a year lacking in Oscar-worthy movies. I think people are just so anxious to see a good, smart film that they got all worked up over this one. Don't get me wrong, it was very good, but I don't think it deserves an Oscar nom. It did not greatly exceed my expectations, but it didn't disappoint. If you like politics or know nothing about politics, go watch this movie! You will either be entertained or learn something or both. I give The Ides of March 3.57 out of 5 stars.