A 2009 British-American science fiction film directed by Duncan Jones
The Movie “Moon” takes place in the near future. In the timeline of the movie, the company “Lunar Industries” harvests Helium-3 from the moon to supply power on Earth. The film centres around Sam (Sam Rockwell), the single human required to man the moon station and GERTY (voiced by Kevin Spacey), the intelligent computer system responsible for keeping Sam alive and healthy. Sam is approaching the end of his three-year stint on the station when the movie begins and is eager to return home to Earth. His only contact with home has been through pre-recorded communication for some time due to a problem with the satellite preventing a live link with Earth from being established and the loneliness is beginning to affect his sanity. Sam’s general health also begins to decline as a series of strange events unfold, leading to a shocking discovery.
Sam (Sam Rockwell) talks to the artificial intelligence unit GERTY (voiced by Kevin Spacey)
“Moon” takes a lot of inspiration from “2001: A Space Odyssey” in its style and pacing. The first half of the film is paced quite slowly but is beautifully shot and sets up the second half of the film very nicely. While some may be put off by the slow build, I would encourage you to stay with it because the pay-off is well worth the wait. “Moon” relies on good storytelling and largely physical effects rather than CGI (there is some CGI in “Moon” but it is minimal) and is richer for it. The story also remains grounded in reality which I found very refreshing. Too many (in my opinion) space-themed movies resort to Aliens or some kind of supernatural theme to deliver their surprises, “Moon” avoids this and is better for it. So if you want a blockbusting, Alien heavy, action thriller then this is not the movie for you, but if you would like to enjoy a well written and acted suspense film with a genuine and believable plot then definitely give “Moon” a watch.
| Starring: | Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey Dominique McElligott and Benedict Wong |
|---|---|
| Stars: | 4/5 |
| Available on: | iTunes and DVD |
