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On the podcast this week, Steven and Sean are calling out to ground control. Steven and Sean to ground control, we\u2019ve stepped through the door and we\u2019re floating in a most peculiar way. Ground control, the stars look very different today. Ground control, we\u2019re talking about Alfonso Cuar\xf3n\u2019s 2013 film, Gravity.

This film shows, in extensive, breathless detail, what\u2019s easily one of my greatest fears. The thought of floating, weightless and untethered, into the dark, where I\u2019ll slowly expire and remain for all eternity is enough to give me chills. We tip our hats to all the filmmakers involved with this one because it\u2019s a clear masterwork, but damn is it a tense film.

Sandra Bullock plays Dr. Ryan Stone on her first space mission. She\u2019s up there with a small crew to make essential repairs to the Hubble Space Telescope. Among the crew is the wise-cracking Matt Kowalski, played with joy and professionalism by George Clooney. This is not his first space mission, indeed, he\u2019s very close to setting a spacewalking record.

Following the destruction of a Russian satellite, a wave of deadly debris rockets toward them, destroying the shuttle they\u2019re attached to and killing everyone on the crew, save for Ryan and Matt. To survive and make it back to Earth, they\u2019re going to have to float their way over first to the International Space Station and then the Tiangong space station. It\u2019s a harrowing, butt-clenching journey that tests their will to live and shows them that there\u2019s always a reason to survive.

Also, it\u2019s a frightening film. It hardly ever lets up for very long. If Stone isn\u2019t narrowly avoiding small chunks of debris threatening to punch holes through her body, she\u2019s on the verge of just giving it all up and killing herself. And who can blame her with all she\u2019s going through? I can\u2019t imagine what it must be like to wonder if every second that passes will be the last one you ever have.

This entire movie is why I\u2019m more than okay with not being an astronaut, or spending any time way out in the ocean for that matter. I plan on keeping both feet firmly planted on (mostly) friendly, trustworthy land for the rest of my life. Will I miss out on traveling through the universe and seeing amazing things? Probably, but then I\u2019ve also seen enough Star Trek to know that advanced and dependable star ships are still prone to getting exploded by angry space aliens.

I don\u2019t want that either.

What I want instead is to tell you that this film is wonderful. It\u2019s a technical marvel; it deserves every accolade it received for its cinematography, visual effects, and sound work. It\u2019s engrossing, terrifying, and jubilant. Sandra Bullock also gives one of the greatest performances ever. It\u2019s a good film that\u2019s sure to stick with you for a long time.

(Recorded on January 04, 2020)

Links to Stuff We Mentioned:

Gravity - IMDb

Gravity trailer - YouTube

Inaccuracies in Gravity | Gravitymovie Wiki - Fandom

Alfonso Cuar\xf3n - IMDb

Emmanuel Lubezki - IMDb

Apple\u2019s new spatial audio feature turns the AirPods Pro into a home theater for your ears - The Verge

Sandra Bullock - IMDb

George Clooney - IMDb

Ed Harris - IMDb