Film Review: MOON (2009) - Revisited

Director: Duncan Jones
Writers: Duncan Jones (story), Nathan Parker
Running time: 97 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

Genre: Drama/Sci-Fi
UK Release date: 17^th July 2009

Watched on DVD Monday 31^st December 2012.

PLEASE NOTE: THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

I saw this film on release and very much enjoyed it; I subsequently bought the DVD but never got around to watching it until today. It has to be said I enjoyed it even more this time around; beautifully paced with a stand-out performance from Sam Rockwell. Here’s a very brief, and spoiler free (I hope), summary before I delve deeper.

In order to ease Earth’s energy crisis, Lunar Industries has several machines harvesting Helium 3 from the rocks on the far side of the moon. These machines are watched over from a base by one Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell). He is on a three year contract but gets regular messages from his wife Tess (Dominique McElligott) and their young daughter, Eve. As he is nearing the end of his contract, Sam finds his health beginning to deteriorate. Whilst out checking on one of the harvesters he has an accident and crashes his rover. He wakes up in the infirmary back at base with no knowledge of the crash. He has noticed one of the harvesters is not moving and wants to investigate but GERTY (voiced by Kevin Spacey); the base computer has orders to keep him inside until a rescue team can get there. Sam manages to get outside and makes his way to the harvester; what he finds there will totally change his life! I guess that’s enough – I don’t want to be accused of giving too much away now!

There is much to admire in this film; everything from Sam Rockwell’s tremendous performance to the special effects on the lunar surface (all done with miniatures). The musical score by Clint Mansell is also excellent; slowly building until the end where it really cuts loose. I thought it was good back in 2009 when I had a 30 mile round-trip to see it; but it was even better this time around. I don’t know whether it’s because I’ve seen so many other films in the mean time or what; but it really struck a chord with me this time! If you love your sci-fi then it’s one I can heartily recommend.

SteelMonster’s verdict: HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

My score: 9.6/10.

IMDb Score: 8.0/10 (based on 135,404 votes when this review was written).
http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt1182345/

MetaScore: 67/100: (Based on 28 critic reviews provided by Metacritic.com at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Tomatometer’ Score: 90/100 (based on 181 reviews counted at the time of going to press).

Rotten Tomatoes ‘Audience’ Score: 86/100 (based on 89,542 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).
http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/10009075-moon/

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FAVOURITE QUOTES:
GERTY: Sam, I can only account for what occurs on this base.

[repeated line]
Computer: Searching for long-range comms.

Sam Bell: You've been up here too long man. You've lost your marbles.

Sam Bell: Are you OK with that?
GERTY: I'm here to keep you safe, Sam. I want to help you.

LINKS:
(NOTE: All links were working at the time of going to press)
Official Site: http://www.sonyclassics.com/moon/
Trailer: (NOTE: Trailer gives away a tad more than I do in the review)

Film Review: MOON (2009)

Director: Duncan Jones
Running time: 97 mins (approx)
Certification (UK): 15

Watched at the cinema Saturday 25th July 2009.

***WARNING! ***PLEASE NOTE: POSSIBLE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

Because this film has had a limited release, I made a round trip of 36 miles to see it. The question is, was it worth it? The answer is a resounding Yes! Although it has quite a slow pace, I could see people in the cinema looking at their watches after just 20 minutes, I found it quite enthralling. As the film goes on the tension slowly rises and you really feel for the main character Sam.

Sam Bell is the sole custodian of a mining operation on the moon that extracts the precious resource Helium 3 from moon rock. This is done with several giant ‘harvesters’ that traverse the lunar surface, processing the rock as they go. The Helium 3 is then sent back to Earth to be used as a clean fuel. Sam is nearing the end of a three year contract running the facility, assisted by the computer GERTY. Whilst out servicing one of the harvesters, Sam is involved in an accident. He wakes up back at the base in the infirmary with no recollection of how he got there. He eventually convinces GERTY to let him outside and he immediately goes to the site of the accident where he finds an injured person who looks exactly like him. I will not say any more about the plot, but needless to say, from here on in it had me gripped.

A truly excellent performance by Sam Rockwell as Sam Bell, ably assisted by Kevin Spacey as the voice of GERTY. The computer GERTY had a quirky ‘smiley face’ on its display that changed depending on the mood which I found an interesting device. Very well directed by Duncan Jones, who also wrote the original story. I found the film slightly reminiscent of Silent Running (1972), with hints of 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), but I won’t draw comparisons. Over all, an enthralling drama set on the moon with a great performance by Sam Rockwell.

My score: 9/10