`Moon,` thought-provoking anti-blockbuster

If you`ve asked yourself whatever happened to existentialist science fiction cinema like Stanley Kubrick`s "2001: A Space Odyssey" or Andrei Tarkovsky`s "Solaris" then "Moon" will fill that void for all serious fans of the genre who`ve been waiting for the anti-Transformers to hit the cinemas.

In this meditative debut feature by Duncan Jones, the director avoids the common pitfalls that so many other first-timers have made in their debuts -- i.e. a tendency to show off through highly stylized visuals, the overuse of post-production trickery, or laying out a soundtrack that is more their own personal iTunes playlist than whether it is relevant to the tone of their film.

Going in without knowing, you would think Jones` film was the work of a seasoned veteran. It has an assured approach in extracting the most out of what is essentially just a film about a lone man on the moon with a sentient robot.



Starring Sam Rockwell in an ethereal performance that will most likely go unnoticed come this awards season as it lacks the oomph that grabs the attention of voters -- Jones creates an atmosphere of dread and desolation so total that the film doesn`t require much of a plot to cull those feelings out of its leading man.

It seems Jones went for the cerebral and it is a welcome return of the thinking man`s science fiction.

Rockwell plays Sam Bell, a maintenance engineer farmed out to a moon base by a powerful corporation to supervise the extraction of a new form of energy reserve called Helium 3.

At the start of the film, Sam is near the end of a three-year contract and looking forward to getting reunited with his wife and baby daughter.

During his time isolated from the rest of the world, Sam`s only means of communication is through video messages sent from his wife keeping him updated on everything from family news to banal gossip around the neighborhood.

Though a live conversation is possible, a signal interference has prevented Sam from communicating with his family in real-time.

Inside the moon base, Sam`s only companion is a robot named GERTY -- voiced by Kevin Spacey -- who seems genuinely concerned and devoted to Sam`s welfare.

As the story edges closer to Sam`s departure from the base, he begins to see strange visions and his perception of what is real and what isn`t becomes blurred.

His mental state slowly deteriorates the more he uncovers the ominous details of his existence on the moon base.

Naturally, one would wonder why such an enormous corporation would send a man with a wife and a 3-year-old daughter away for three years instead of someone without familial obligations or significant ties on earth.

The film answers that question in chilling and haunting fashion. The revelation is made all the more horrific as it is done silent without the set-up of incidental music cues, sound effects, or build-up.

Jones realizes the climax doesn`t need to be buoyed by them.

The unraveling of the true identity behind Sam -- however shocking it may be -- is not what director Jones is interested in.

What Jones is interested in is to let his viewers experience what Sam experiences while living in isolation. It`s more mood-driven than it is narrative-driven.

The film could have worked even without the sinister plot towards the third and final act.

The film was written by the director and his writing partner Nathan Parker especially for Sam Rockwell and it seems tailor made for the subversive character actor`s penchant for communicating feelings through mannerisms and behavioral quirks.

Clint Mansell`s minimalist musical score has echoes of Eliot Goldenthal (Heat) and his work on the film is an integral component creating the right nuance for a man spiraling into the deep end of his own personal life crisis.

Rockwell is engaging and thoroughly interesting in a complex role which required him to act alone without much human interaction. Think Tom Hanks in "Castaway" except set inside a space station and on the moon.

The production design was clearly influenced by "2001: A Space Odyssey" with the use of real miniature models rather than CGI to create the film`s surreal moon-scape.

Jones has created something of a minor classic in the serious science fiction genre with "Moon."

It is a beautiful and haunting film that will undoubtedly provoke repeated viewings.

The film rolls out in theaters nationwide in Korea Nov. 26

(kws@heraldm.com)







By Song Woong-ki