London Film Festival: Gravity

 

 

Finally the BFI London Film Festival is here. I was successful in my ticket ballot application to attend the Opening Night Gala of Captain Philips but unfortunately I had to work so I couldn’t attend. The movie is released next week nationwide so I’ll catch it then. This is my second year attending the festival, last year I managed to see The Sessions, Seven Psychopaths, End of Watch and eventual Best Picture winner Argo. This year I’ve gone one better and I’m seeing eleven film premieres over the next eight days. So if you want to follow all the London Film Festival coverage then feel free to check back here over the next eight days, I’ll have it all covered. As I mentioned last year I was lucky enough to attend the premiere of eventual Best Picture winner Argo, could history repeat itself? We’ll have to wait and see.

 

 

So last night I attended the premiere of Alfonso Cuaron’s highly anticipated Gravity starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney. To access the venue on these events, you have to walk down the red carpet with the stars, which is a pretty cool experience. I didn’t manage to see Sandra Bullock or Alfonso Cuaron unlike last year where I literally walked right next to Ben Affleck and Bryan “Walter White” Cranston, maybe I’ll bump into someone on the carpet over the next few days. Once I entered the venue I took my seat front and centre. I don’t know why people hate sitting on the front row at the cinema; it gives you the best possible experience. After examining the freebies left on my seat, Sandra Bullock, Alfonso Cuaron and David Heyman, who is the producer the film along with the entire Harry Potter series, were welcomed to the stage to give an introduction to the movie. Sometimes at these events the cast speak before the film briefly other times they stay longer afterwards for a Q and A session, it just depends really. David Heyman begun and mentioned he’d previously worked with Alfonso Cuaron on Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, which in my opinion is the best Harry Potter movie and Cuaron’s direction plays a huge part in that. Heyman discussed how the film had been in production for around seven years in which Cuaron joked was mainly due to them not knowing what they were doing. Heyman spoke about some of the filming techniques, including how Cuaron created a lighting box which was rigged with different cameras. Sandra Bullock would be strapped into the box with robotic camera moving around freely to gain the best possible shots. Heyman joked the day before shooting begun, they tested the lighting box with a dummy in which one camera didn’t stop and crashed straight through, but they didn’t mention that to Sandra, who just glared back. You could tell these guys had fun working together. Sandra Bullock discussed the physical nature of her performance and said she may have moaned and complained for hours on set but in the end it was worth the experience. She went on to talk about her experience inside the lighting box, in which the room would be completely pitch black and when she called out to Alfonso Cuaron, she could only hear him, not see him. So it really helped her to gain that feeling and sense of being literally alone, trapped, speaking into the darkness. Alfonso Cuaron discussed working with Tim Webber, who was the visual effects supervisor and how they put the frames and cuts of the film together before thanking us all for attending and hoped we enjoyed the film.

 Honestly before I give my actual review, all I can say about this movie is just wow. I don’t think any words or description I give can do this movie justice. You really have to see it for yourself, especially in the cinema because it isn’t a normal viewing, it’s an experience. I was attending a 3D screening in which I usually hate 3D but I must admit the use of 3D on Gravity is the best I’ve ever seen. Not only did you feel like you were actually in the movie, but there were certain scenes in which the camera movement subtly moves inside Sandra Bullock’s space helmet and you see the movie from her perspective. Alfonso Cuaron waited years so more advanced filming technology could be created, so he could create a realistic portrayal of space. After James Cameron’s Avatar was made, Cuaron knew he had the technology to create his vision. The visual effects are stunning, the best I’ve ever seen and more advanced then Avatar. James Cameron even called Gravity, “The best space movie ever made” which is certainly a huge compliment from someone like James Cameron. The movie begun with a stunning single shot sequence, if you’re not familiar with a single shot sequence, it’s basically a long uninterrupted shot without the camera cutting. Alfonso Cuaron used the technique when shooting Children of Men, here’s a quick example.
 

It’s an extraordinary technique that takes a lot of pre-preparation, with the actors having to remember every movement along with dialogue because there are no cuts. It makes the action feel real because the scene flows as if you were really there. Anyway that example was only four minutes long, which is a rare single shot in itself. The opening single shot of Gravity lasted anywhere between twelve and seventeen minutes long. Truly fascinating stuff. We are introduced to Ryan Stone and Matt Kowalski played by Sandra Bullock and George Clooney respectively, who are the only two actors in the entire movie. Dr. Ryan Stone is a Bio-medical engineer and Mission Specialist on her first space shuttle mission while Matt Kowalski is a veteran astronaut who is commanding his final expedition. The interaction between Stone and Kowalski are great with Bullock and Clooney cast perfectly. Kowalski is the macho, confident and outgoing while Stone is nervous, insecure and would rather be by herself. The script itself is actually quite witty during Kowalski and Stone’s interaction helping to bring some light hearted moments to an overall tense ride. After the brief introduction to the mission and allowing the audience time to familiarise themselves with the space surroundings, disaster strikes when high-speed debris from a Russian missile strike damages the shuttle creating a chain reaction of destruction including losing all communication from Mission Control on Earth and separating Stone and Kowalski with Stone only having a small amount of oxygen left in her tank to survive. The audience follow Dr. Ryan Stone from this point, in which you truly feel like you apart of this journey with her. You feel trapped and alone yourself due to the masterful direction from Alfonso Cuaron. This may sound boring to some regular moviegoers but I assure you it isn’t. Don’t expect huge action sequences and things blowing up because Gravity has created a realistic portray of being in space alone. Cuaron has created enough tension during some sequences to keep you on the edge of your seat. It’s a very difficult task to perform alone on screen for long durations; James Franco did a fantastic job in 127 Hours a few years back but Sandra Bullock really demonstrated the intensity of her character’s situation. Whether it was the immediate panic, the fear of being alone, the acceptance of death or the determination to survive, she portrayed them all beautifully. Cuaron created a heartfelt back story for the character too, which really highlights the insecure nature of Bullock’s character, which only makes the audience more attached to her. Sandra Bullock has some real stand out moments throughout the film, while a lot of her role is very physically demanding; she also has some emotion dialogue that could really seal a second Oscar for her.

The film is technically breath taking; I’ve already mentioned the outstanding visual effects along with the stunning cinematography but sound also plays a huge part in the movie. Some moments are pure silence, because there is no sound in space and you can just sit back and admire the beauty of the cinematography. Steven Price’s Original Score beautifully plays in synch with certain heartfelt or intense moments throughout the film which really help draw the audience in further. Like I mentioned previous this isn’t your usual movie viewing, it feels more like a stimulation experience and once the credits roll, you’ll be thankful you’ve been on solid ground the entire time. Do yourself a favour and see this movie, I promise it’s worth it. I don’t really want to spoil too much for you.

So how do I think Gravity will do with the Academy? Well the film has already received universal acclaim and has scored 96 out of 100 on Metacritic based on reviews making it one of the highest rated films ever. Gravity and Twelve Years a Slave seem to be the two early front-runners for Best Picture but the Oscar ceremony is still five months away, so a lot could happen between now and then. If Gravity won Best Picture it would not only be the first Sci-Fi movie to win but also the first 3D movie along with the fewest cast members. I’m certain the film will be nominated for Best Picture, along with Best Director, Best Leading Actress, Best Original Screenplay along with a bunch of tech awards including Best Visual Effects, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing and Best Original Score leading to a potential total of ten nominations but how many of these awards could Gravity win? Only time will tell. But if anything we know one thing for certain; Gravity has helped to restore our faith in cinema.

Oscar Potential

Best Picture

Best Director, Alfonso Cuaron
Best Actress in a Leading Role, Sandra Bullock
Best Original Screenplay
Best Original Score
Best Cinematography
Best Editing
Best Visual Effects
Best Sound Editing
Best Sound Mixing
.