Amph Alfonso Cuaron's Gravity (spoilers inside)

Imax is supposed to be brighter

 

I am watching real Time w/ Bill Maher righ tnow and one of th epanel is Neil deGrasse Tyson. If you saw one of my posts here I posted his twitter responses with one concerning his problem with a medical doctor doing something to the Hubble. As I pointed out there have been a few MD's trained as astronauts and one of them had to perform an EVA for a repair. Mr Tyson just sat there and repeated his error, and I just wonder how nusy he is to not get that information. I found in 2 minutes.

 

One month later.

 

The hell you waiting for??

 

Don't worry, you're not alone with having not seen it yet.

 

No. Worry.

 

I have a bunch of movies I need to see in the upcoming month though!

 

It opens this Friday here in the UK. I hope to see it next week at some point.

 

I look forward to your review.

 

Alright it's my bday tomorrow, and I'm probably going to go see a movie. Which would be better, this, or Ender's Game?

 

I enjoyed this one better than Ender's.

 

So should I just see this movie, or do a double feature with EG as well?

 

Might as well do a double. Ender's Game was pretty good but it felt...disjointed somehow. Kind of how I felt about Order of the Phoenix film. And it just kind of...ends. I read the book waaaaaaay back when so I forgot most of it. The soundtrack was good though, reminded me of Daft Punk from Tron.

 

I loved loved loved the soundtrack to Tron: Legacy, so now my interest has increased!

 

Gravity is all over the People's Choice Awards site. I voted.

 

Saw it this morning at the local Vue cinema. I really enjoyed it. However, there was a guy in the row behind me who was bawling like a baby starting at

Spoiler: Spoils

the scene where she left the Chinese space station and all through the re-entry

.

He got me going and when you wear contact lenses that isn't a good thing!

Highly recommended if you haven't seen it yet.

 

The first third was superlative; the second third was very good; the last third was bordering on godawful.

I really wish they had not felt the need to put those massive speeches in Ryan's mouth at the end. The "hell of a ride" speech especially. Boy, was that stupid. Any actress worth her salt could have conveyed all those emotions with no words. What we need to know is that she's afraid but finally reaching peace about whatever happens to her. That could have been a really great scene; instead it was just a woman bellowing disconnected thoughts with no one listening.

And don't even get me started on

Spoiler

when she almost ******* drowned herself

I mean, Jesus, that would have been ignominious, right? I mean,

Spoiler

how does she not know that's what's going to happen when she pops that hatch? And after all she went through to get back to Earth, she's just like, "hmm, let's open this and let fifty tons of water come battering in on me and flood the capsule, taking me to the bottom like a stone." I mean, what the hell.

On the plus side, the first two thirds are very suspenseful and vertiginous (and I didn't even see it in 3D or IMAX). I was really gripping tightly onto my seat. And both Clooney and Bullock are really, really good in this first hour or so of the movie. The direction is astonishing and the special effects are breathtaking. I was really on the edge of my seat during that whole first hour. It just went haywire after that. In my opinion.

 

I think it's an extraordinary achievement on every level, so much so that I felt like I was having an out of body experience. Not only is it one of the most immersive films I think that's ever been made, but it completely defies the conventions of cinema itself in its conception and execution. Further, I think those that are discounting the profound nature of the story itself and Ryan Stone's character arc are severely undercutting what makes the film so emotionally effective.

My full review is here if anyone is interested.

 

Also, the capsule was still floating, she was trying to get out before it sank and had to keep going.

 

That nearly happened to Gus Grissom:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gus_Grissom#Liberty_Bell_7

 

Spoiler

Those capsules are buoyant. The reason Grissom nearly drowned is because the hatch malfunctioned and opened too early. The only reason a capsule sinks is if you let water into it. Which is exactly why she nearly drowns. Because she opened the hatch and let water into it. Plus, there's a hatch above the waterline (I'm pretty sure I saw it), as there typically is; I mean, it doesn't make a heck of a lot of sense to put a hatch below the waterline does it, what with the whole "capsule filling with water, nearly drowning astronaut" thing.

I did forget about the fire. But still, there's that hatch that's above the water line for that, I should think. I believe the capsules balanced so as to shift to a hatch above water position.