The Man In The Moon (Moon (DVD))

Member Name: cyberem78

Product:	Moon (DVD)
Date:	15/08/09 (65 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Sam Rockwell gives a stunning performance.

Disadvantages: None.

'Moon' is a 2009 movie by first time director Duncan Jones (David Bowie's son) and starring Sam Rockwell. The story is set sometime in the future. Mankind now mines the moon for rocks that provide an energy source. An astronaut, Sam Bell, is due to finish his three year contract looking after a space station that controls the mining machines on the lunar surface. His only companion on the station is a robot computer called GERTY (voiced by Kevin Spacey). However, just as Sam is due to leave he begins to suffer from hallucinations and ill health. Bursting with cabin fever he makes a trip in a buggy into the dark space outside and what he finds there is both distrubing and confusing. 'Moon' is a difficult movie to discuss without giving the plot away but I'll try my best to give you a good idea of what the film is like!

Sam Rockwell's performance as Sam is quite amazing to watch. He basically carries the whole movie and there are only a handful of performances by the rest of the cast. Movies that feature a central performance like this are often held up to ridicule if not done well. I have always thought Sam Rockwell was a fantastic actor (watch him in 'Lawn Dogs' for another great performance) but in this he is outstanding. The part was written specifically for him and he does it justice. He is able to reveal character through speech and demeanor. He is able to play everything demanded of him in the script - from comedy to tragedy. He is truly mesmerising from beginning to end. There are some particularly wonderful and moving moments for instance when he watches video messages from his wife - Rockwell's expression is subtle and real. The script also demands that Rockwell changes throughout the movie to express the deterioration of Sam both physically and mentally and this is done with great skill.

There are a few comic moments throughout the movie. A lot of these evolve from Sam's relationship with Gerty and other inanimate objects in the space station. Lonliness makes these relationships seem so much more important than they actually are. Gerty assumes the status of a best buddy and Spacey's cool, calm voice and humanoid tendancies are endearing. Another source of humour is the interaction between Sam and his possible 'demons'. It is strange to witness someone trying to deny the fact that they may be visually hallucinating.

I thought the plotline was a little bit obvious and easy to guess as the film got underway and there were no real surprises in store, no twists or turns involving the big reveal that I wasn't expecting. This didn't really matter though as it was executed so well - the story was interesting and compelling. The ending was unexpected and satisfying and I felt that I was thoroughly invested in the story and the character of Sam. Sam is definately a hero you will want to get behind!

Moon didn't dissapoint me in any way. I thought that there were a lot of genres working together in the movie. At times it felt like a ghost story, at other times a romantic tragedy, at other times it was very sci-fi. I thought the atmosphere was always stimulating - the script and action at times sending a shiver through me, at times making me laugh out loud. The themes in the movie are intelligent and thought-provoking and touch on the nature and morals of mankind, the real cost of 'progress' and conservation issues. The whole package is fantastic, a movie that you should definately see.

Summary: A great, thought-provoking movie.