Author Topic: Movie: Gravity - Contains some small/potential spoilers  (Read 245515 times)

Offline p51

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #100 on: 09/30/2013 07:34 pm »
Just found out it's coming to an IMAX screen very close to my home, I'm certainly going to see it that way!
I've yet to see this movie.
Only media types have seen it yet. It's not released to the public.
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Offline collectSPACE

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #101 on: 09/30/2013 11:50 pm »
A photo WB posted. Orbiter Explorer after the debris strike.

That's not a movie still but rather a screenshot from the simulation game available on the Gravity movie website. The damage in the movie is different.
« Last Edit: 09/30/2013 11:51 pm by collectSPACE »

Offline collectSPACE

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #102 on: 09/30/2013 11:52 pm »
'Gravity' movie mission patches shaped by real space history
http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-093013a.html

You can't have a spaceflight without a mission patch, even if the expedition is fictional.

Warning: The following article contains minor spoilers.

In "Gravity," director Alfonso Cuarón's new movie about astronauts (Sandra Bullock and George Clooney) stranded on a spacewalk, the attention paid to mission patches — of which there are several different designs in the film — exemplifies the level of detail that the filmmakers pursued when recreating the look of a real spaceflight.

The film's visual effects, production and costume design teams researched real space hardware to produce faithful digital (and sometimes physical) recreations of the space shuttle, Hubble Space Telescope, the International Space Station, Russia's Soyuz spacecraft and more. The same attention was paid to the astronauts' spacesuits.

But they didn't stop there...

Offline OV135

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #103 on: 10/02/2013 12:02 am »
I plan to see this movie this weekend.  I also can tell people will have fanfiction of it. Even some of us who will pretty much nit pick and make corrections to the technical bits Hollywood screw up.  :)


Offline jcopella

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #104 on: 10/02/2013 03:25 am »
Early reviews for this film are very, very strong.

http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/gravity_2013/

"I don't think the country is really going to realize what a good deal that we had in the space shuttle until we don't have it anymore." -- Wayne Hale

Offline Zed_Noir

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #105 on: 10/02/2013 05:33 am »
Don't google  "Gravity movie"  if you don't want spoilers. someone posted the whole movie plot there.  :(
« Last Edit: 10/02/2013 08:20 pm by Zed_Noir »

Offline majormajor42

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #106 on: 10/02/2013 10:32 am »
I think 2001 is an exception. Yet it is an exceptional movie.
Yeah, but there is some serious flaws in the science in that film, too, not to mention many average people consider that to be one of the most boring movies ever made.

Alfonso Cuarón:
Quote
the daddy and mommy of every space movie, 2001. I doubt that will ever be surpassed.

http://www.wired.com/underwire/2013/10/center_of_gravity/

Nice interview where he addresses some of the things that the people in this forum are interested in.
...water is life and it is out there, where we intend to go. I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man or machine on a body such as the Moon and harvest a cup of water for a human to drink or process into fuel for their craft.

Offline collectSPACE

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #107 on: 10/03/2013 01:14 pm »
'Gravity' reality check: Alfonso Cuarón and Sandra Bullock talk fact vs. fiction (video)
http://www.collectspace.com/news/news-100313a.html

In the new movie "Gravity," starring Sandra Bullock and George Clooney, it's possible to forget you are watching a film and not NASA footage.

That is because director Alfonso Cuarón chose to set his story about astronauts stranded on a spacewalk within the setting of real spaceflight, recreating, often in painstaking detail, modern day spacecraft and hardware.

But Cuarón is clear about what "Gravity" is, and what it is not. Warning: Minor spoilers follow.

"This is not a documentary," the director said in a recent interview with collectSPACE.com. "It is a piece of fiction."

Offline Orbiter

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #108 on: 10/03/2013 05:19 pm »
"Gravity" has an impressive RT rating, 98% based off nearly 100 reviews from critics. We'll see if it holds. I'll probably go see it over the weekend as I've got nothing better to do (although there's going to be a hurricane off my coast apparently).
« Last Edit: 10/03/2013 05:19 pm by Orbiter »
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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #109 on: 10/03/2013 08:02 pm »
Planning on seeing it tonight: IMAX 3D. I see about 3 movies per year now that I have kids (about 20x fewer than I used to), and I've been waiting for this one for months. I'll try to post spoiler-free impressions tomorrow sometime.

Offline p51

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #110 on: 10/03/2013 11:27 pm »
A pal of mine in Houston was being a jerk on the phone this morning and told me the basic plot (should have hung up on him), but he did say he saw the film with some astronauts at a NASA screening. He said almost everyone there was impressed.
From his description, you'll need to leave your sense of disbelief at the door but from what I understand of the plot and how he desrbied the reactions to the film by those who have been in space, it sounds like a winner.
"The years forever fashion new dreams when old ones go. God pity a one-dream man."
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Offline jcopella

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #111 on: 10/04/2013 03:29 am »
"I don't think the country is really going to realize what a good deal that we had in the space shuttle until we don't have it anymore." -- Wayne Hale

Offline cjd

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #112 on: 10/04/2013 06:45 am »

I just watched Gravity on regular 3D, all I can say is wow... I'm going to watch it again on IMAX 3D. 


Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #113 on: 10/04/2013 02:54 pm »
Saw it last night in IMAX 3D. Here are my spoiler-free impressions:

Cons:
- I'd give the movie a failing grade on orbital mechanics. The height above Earth looked right and the Earth moved underneath the astronauts at a speed that believably could result from 90 minute orbits, but that's about it. There are several egregious errors in how mechanics are handled. If you watched the movie not knowing anything about orbital mechanics, you might enjoy the film more, but you certainly wouldn't learn anything.
- The technical stuff displays typical Easy-To-Operate movie tropes. It seems, for instance, that airlocks operate  in seconds in Gravity's universe, astronauts don't get the bends, and spacecraft can be operated with a couple of button presses.
- The "messaging" in the film is unnecessary. There's an attempt at a character arc that just feels tacked on and silly given the very narrow focus of the film. I'm not sure why it just couldn't be about competent astronauts struggling to survive a terrible accident.

Pros:
- The microgravity stuff is awe inspiring. The movie must be mostly CGI (though you mostly cannot tell) in nearly every frame because micro-gravity and reaction physics are handled consistently and realistically throughout the movie. (There are a couple exceptions, but considering the scale of what's been accomplished, they're forgivable.)
- The external views of the equipment should make any spaceflight aficionado squeal with glee. These are lovingly detailed models of existing spacecraft rendered to scale against EVA'd astronauts. Bad things happen to the spacecraft, but they are certainly beautiful.
- Acting is good, though I don't think I'd say Oscar caliber. Clooney plays, basically Clooney and is charming and likable. Bullock plays her part very well too; her character is clearly frightened, but also confident and determined and matter-of-fact. She is a believable scientist, not a Christmas Jones.
- The vision of the movie is laudably constrained. There's no attempt to give backstory; it drops you right into the action and never leaves it for the length of the film. I like this very focused kind of story-telling. No distractions; no diversions.
- The star of the movie is the visuals. Nearly every frame of the film would make a fantastic desktop background. It's worth seeing just for the spectacle, and I don't mean the explosions. I mean the beautiful images of Earth below, the spacecraft and astronauts hanging in orbit, weather phenomenon, city lights, etc all in sharp relief and exquisite detail.

Final grade: B+
Any space fan will enjoy the film; just suspend your disbelief regarding orbits and mechanics and enjoy the show.

3D Note: The movie was designed to be viewed in 3D. There are, for instance, some first person sequences that look fantastic in 3D, and the depth of the clouds and other weather effects above the Earth really pop out beautifully, conveying the depth that is impossible to see in flat images. That said, the 3D does smear out some of the detail, particularly of the Earth. YMMV.
« Last Edit: 10/04/2013 02:56 pm by Matt_W »

Online Jarnis

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #114 on: 10/04/2013 04:50 pm »
Good to hear and matches what I expected. "F" for orbital mechanics, "A"/"A+" for visual detail and portraying the setting. I'm willing to concede that scriptwriters and movie directors are clueless about orbital mechanics and just enjoy the eye candy.

Offline Crispy

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #115 on: 10/04/2013 05:53 pm »
Good to hear and matches what I expected. "F" for orbital mechanics, "A"/"A+" for visual detail and portraying the setting. I'm willing to concede that scriptwriters and movie directors are clueless about orbital mechanics and just enjoy the eye candy.

Based on the interviews I've read, the writer and director took expert advice and were well aware of the inaccuracies, but deliberately ignored them in the interest of drama. This is fine by me. Imagine, if you like, that it is set in an alternate universe where a space station and a space telescope are in very similar orbits. I'm just excited to see a movie that is, by all accounts, stunningly well-made, about contemporary realistic space travel.

Offline Orbiter

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #116 on: 10/04/2013 06:09 pm »
Good to hear and matches what I expected. "F" for orbital mechanics, "A"/"A+" for visual detail and portraying the setting. I'm willing to concede that scriptwriters and movie directors are clueless about orbital mechanics and just enjoy the eye candy.

Based on the interviews I've read, the writer and director took expert advice and were well aware of the inaccuracies, but deliberately ignored them in the interest of drama. This is fine by me. Imagine, if you like, that it is set in an alternate universe where a space station and a space telescope are in very similar orbits. I'm just excited to see a movie that is, by all accounts, stunningly well-made, about contemporary realistic space travel.

I'll just imagine NASA for whatever reason launched an identical HST replacement after the Columbia disaster, so that in the case of an emergency, the ISS could be used as a safe haven.  It does use a fictional space shuttle, space shuttle (Explorer) after all. Might as well be set in an alternative universe.
« Last Edit: 10/04/2013 06:11 pm by Orbiter »
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Offline Dyna-Soar

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #117 on: 10/04/2013 07:08 pm »
Perhaps the "Hubble" is actually one of the spy sats that the NRO gifted NASA with recently.
Aim high (but don't blow yourself up)!- Homer Hickam

Why don't you fix your little problem and light this candle?

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Offline mr. mark

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #118 on: 10/04/2013 07:18 pm »
Hey, It's a movie everyone....  It's not supposed to be real::)

Offline rdale

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Re: Movie: Gravity
« Reply #119 on: 10/04/2013 07:38 pm »
Just to clarify - is this an "action thriller" set in space, or some sort of weird alien something or other version of scifi?

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