Expect No Spoilers
The critically acclaimed movie made by David Bowie's son. Isn't that what everyone is saying? It's made by Bowie Zowie [a.k.a. Ducan Jones]! What people should be saying is, "This is an awesome movie, show it in more theaters!", but alas by the time you read this review; Moon will probably on its way to your local video rental store.
It has been about a week and a half since I have watched Moon. The trouble with writing a review like this is being as descriptive as possible without giving away too much of the plot. Luckily the people who read these [poorly edited] reviews are usually those who have already seen the movie or those who are going to watch it regardless of what is written about the movie.
Let us start with the 'no-duhs'. Moon is a science fiction movie that takes place in the not-to-distant future. Moon stars Sam Rockwell playing a guy named Sam. Sam's job for the past three years as a biological researcher on the Moon was to send info and shipments back to Earth which could help with our energy problem. These past three years have been quite trying on both his personal health as well as his relationship with his wife and daughter.
Sam is assisted by a computer named GERTY, who is voiced by Kevin Spacey. The lovable GERTY is definitely a less menacing version of HAL 9000. A now infamous character from Kubrick's 2001: Space Oddyssey. 2001 has probably come up in a lot of critics reviews not because of Moon's similarities, but there are not a lot of other movies that compare well with Moon. This movie is Sam Rockwell's "Cast Away" moment, a vehicle where it is just the camera and the person(s).
What He Left Behind
Moon is slow, but in comparasion to the epileptic seizures of what constitutes an action summer blockbuster this movie is the tortoise easily whipping the hare. There are moments where the plot is somewhat predictable, but for every 'one' of those moments there are easily more surprises and consistent high points which should keep the viewer guessing. Sam is struggling with a mystery on this ship and thusly what his life stands for, but as opposed to making a movie where Sam is a complete sap and is crying every 10 minutes; he decides to change his life. With changing his life, Sam decides to change the future such that what has always happened will not happen again [hmm...speaking of Earth's power consumption issues?].
Sam Rockwell as well as the incredible set design need a round of applause. The performance in this movie will have people who were not eager to see Iron Man 2 have a more piqued interest since Rockwell's announcement. An unsung hero of this movie would be the make-up artists. Without giving anything away, the make-up in this movie is something that should be used in Danny Boyle's next zombie feature.
If you are reading this, then you know it is a great movie. Convince others, twist arms, blackmail, do what is necessary to give studios more faith and filmakers in putting out movies 'like these' during the blockbuster season. Better yet, how about Hollywood releasing movies like these all year around? Smaller budgets lead to less theaters and significantly less advertising, but movies like these can be made all the time. It is up to more people to watch great movies like Moon. Keep up the good work Duncan Jones.
I give Moon...
The Astronaut Cheese