The sci-fi genre has changed alot over the years, it's changed from the deep thought provoking sci-fi of the older generation to the CGI explosion fests that mostly grace the silver screen today. The modern sci-fi usually consits of robots punching each other which is of course very intelectually stimulating. Moon is not like this at all and is just simply amazing. It is a iflm which gets just about everything spot on, it may be a film with the feel of the past but it's the kind of film you want to see more of in the future.The concept of moon is deceptivly simple, it is the future and man kind depends on the moon's resources for their energy needs. This new found energy keeps Earth in a prosperous state but there is a cost, for one man at least. Sam Bell (brilliantly played by Sam Rockwell) is on a three year contract on the moon where he keeps check on all the machinary and apparatus that keeps the energy coming from the moon. The catch here is that Sam Bell is all by himself, alone on the moon for three years. Well not quite alone, he is accompanied by a computer with the voice of Kevin Spacey called GERTY, a computer programmed to service all of Sam's needs. Although sam has GERTY for company he definately suffers deep problems brought about by extreme isolation. His contact with Earth is next to nothing, he cannot establish a signal in order to have a live conversation with Earth but he can send off messages and recieve them back but this is of course limited.
The film relies soley on Sam Rockwell's performance for he plays the only real part in the film, luckily he plays it brilliantly. Every moment of despair, every character flaw and every glimmer of hope is conveyed masterfully making Sam Bell one of the most believable characters in cinema full stop. The film just has a human feel to it which makes this sci-fi moon based film ironically feel very down to Earth. Although Sam's descent into seemingly insane isolation is a delight to watch it is suprising that this happens due to the brilliance of GERTY. Kevin Spacey's voice work manages to set a mood in every scene, the character of GERTY will keep you guessing. At the start there is a definate underlying menace to his lines but you are never quite sure of GERTY's intentions. This makes a computer yet another compelling character, the interplay between the two superb performances of Spacey's voice and Rockwell's acting makes this film compelling throughout. It is a film which is very action light, it focuses more on the old sci-fi idea of a film of ideas not action, yet suspense is kept throughout by an intriguing and brilliant plot which is complimented by a sublime score.
The music sets the scene for the movie perfectly, it is simple yet powerful. The main tune is a shifting motif which changes slightly throughout certain scenes. It can create an atmosphere of despair, hope, joy or deep sadness at any point and is one more perfect layer to this fantastic film. The atmosphere is one of the best bits, it somehow manages to be an American film with the feel of the quaint British film. It mixes powerful emotional scenes with a dash of humour which add to the human feel of the film and of course to the realism.
To summarise this a a must watch. The fact that this film didn't get a full release is a crime to cinema. I cannot remember a better film that I have seen in the cinema and is a refreshing change to mindless sci-fi. This is the debut film for director Duncan Jones (son of David Bowie) and looks like the start of a great career. Everything about Moon is just simply amazing, the feel, the acting, the ideas behind it, the script- even the length. At just over one hour and thirty five minutes this film doesn't drag at all and makes the powerful ending scenes even more effective. This is a film which needs to be experienced in the cinema so go out and see it! It's a refreshing change to see an 'old fashioned' sci-fi film outshine anything else that has come out recently in the genre. This low budget masterpiece is proof that the Michael Bay treatment is not how to make fantastic sci-fi, this may have a retro industrial look but it is totally fitting and makes for one impressive looking movie. Infact I only have on small complaint with this film, swearing, at some points the ammount of F-Bombs chucked around towards the end seems a bit pointless. It saps the brillaint subtletly from the film slightly but that is the only probel. Every other director needs to take a leaf from Duncan Jones because this homage to Sci-fi's past would make the perfect future.
Rating: 5/5- a truly astonishing piece of cinema, truly deserving of every academy award
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