Take 2001, mix in a little Cast Away, and you have Moon the latest attempt by the brilliantly talented Sam Rockwell to make something really good. Rockwell deserves to land in an Oscar caliber film some day but he’s yet again just missed the mark here as an astronaut living out a lonely existence on an isolated lunar mining colony.
Sam has been serving out his contract in space for nearly three years now. In two weeks his tour of duty is up and he’ll go home to civilization, humanity, and family. His only companion for the past three years has been the station’s automated helper, a friendly automaton named Gerty who is absolutely nothing like Hal. No really, Moon goes out of its way to beat you over the head with that. It’s painfully obvious that Gertie was written with Hal in mind and a grim determination to be so little like him that, ironically it’s impossible to avoid the comparison.
Unfortunately for Sam, before he can go home something starts to go horribly wrong. There’s an accident, Sam isn’t feeling well, and hey who is that other guy on the lunar station?
Kevin Spacey provides the voice of Gertie and Sam receives a couple of recorded messages, but Rockwell is, for the most part, the only person on screen. It works because Sam is magnetic enough to keep us interested even when he’s surrounded only by himself, with the space stuff lingering in the background to provide atmosphere, both literally and figuratively, for his scenes.
As for the film, Moon does a good job of establishing a specific tone and developing a mildly twisty plot. Unfortunately the movie’s main character often lags far behind the audience in figuring out what’s going on, and for those whose brains have already leaped ahead to the next step that may get frustrating. Still, the film at least makes a good run at thoughtful, brain-teasing science fiction. It simply paints itself into a corner, leaving no way to reach a truly satisfying resolution. Moon won’t disappoint, but it’s not likely to stick with you either.
For more of our coverage from the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, click here.
