adambatman82
Posts: 11156
Joined: 15/12/2005
From: Sheffield
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Moon (2009)
A startling science-fiction film from a young British talent is hardly the regular fare of an average "saturday night at the movies", but in Moon that is exactly what we had last night.
The story of Sam Bell (an Oscar nomination worthy Sam Rockwell), the lone worker at a mining colony on the moon, Moon deals with issues of identity, being and sanity. Whilst out on a routine call one day Sam has an accident, and reawakens back in the moon base he calls home. As Sam is the only person on the moon the actual event raises several questions. Who brought Sam back to the base? Did Sam actually have an accident, or was it an extended version of the hallucinations that he'd been suffering? Why does he have the urge to go back to the crash site?
One of the most impressive factors as to how Moon works so well is simply because everything fits into place, and everything has an answer. Most importantly the revelations don't feel audacious or over the top, and within the context of the story they are actually believable. By the end of the feature we are left with a satisfying and rounded story, and one that doesn't outstay its welcome or push its luck. Thematically the film deals with the sort of issues one would expect from a dystopian science-fiction thriller from the 1970's. As the events unfold, and details of a corporate-led conspiracy unfold we are reminded of the likes of Soylent Green and the original Rollerball. Tonally we see traits of Outland (which incidently, is due a late night rewatch this week) and the often lauded Silent Running, with their "key protagonist in space" story-lines.
The visuals of the film impress, if not for the high quality that has been achieved on a very modest budget. The outside locales of the surface of the moon remind heavily of the Supermarionation-based work of Gerry Anderson, with the wonderful model work being a hint at a time gone by in terms of film making. Its beautifully executed work, and oozes charm when placed next to the overt-CG of the average summer blockbuster. The interiors of the film largely consist of one location, which is not only an effective budgetary device, but a strong cinematic tool for enforcing the claustrophobic nature of the film. Alongside Rockwell the only character with any real screen-time is GERTY, an on board robot that deems itself protector of Sam. Hal-9000's legacy dictates that no film-starring computer is to be trusted, although I was very happy with the way GERTY's arc panned out. Kevin Spacey provides the emotionless vocal touch to GERTY, reinforcing the films clinical and claustrophobic constitution.
Accompanying the wonderful visuals is a pitch-perfect score from Clint Mansell, who proved himself to be a composer of interest through his work with Darren Aronofsky (his score to The Fountain being a staple of the modern football advertisement). The score successfully conveys the contradictory nature of the protagonist's emotions incredibly well, with the dual nature of the score, half being drum based, the rest reliant on piano, reflecting our hero well.
As mentioned in my opening statement, Moon deals with notions of identity. As the true intentions of the narrative are made clear this proves incredibly (and even somewhat surprisingly) emotive. We genuinely feel for the character(s?) on screen, and can't help but attempt to avoid the inevitable truth that lay ahead. I was at loggerheads as to how to approach this piece on the film, as it's usually not my intent to consciously avoid spoilers, but in the case of Moon I will, and tackle the film more fully when it sees DVD release. Moon is a film that I can imagine I will return to, pore over and admire for quite some time.
< Message edited by elab49 -- 11/5/2011 11:35:13 AM >
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