Hello there, and welcome to Thursday Movie Picks, a weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves where you share three movies to fit the theme of the week each Thursday.
This week's topic is astronauts, those lucky bastards that travel in space like there's no tomorrow. Well, actually sometimes they don't have a tomorrow because they die, but not in my three picks. Oops, sorry for the spoilers.
Gravity (2013)
Sandra Bullock and George Clooney are doing their thing in the space when a catastrophe happens and destroys their shuttle, leaving them adrift in orbit. Man, I wouldn't want to be one of those right now. Anyway, this multi-Academy Award winner is thrilling, absorbing, a little emotional and visually spectacular. And Sandra Bullock gives one of her best performances ever. Maybe her best.
Interstellar (2014)
In the near future, a team of explorers must find the human race a new home and in order to do that they travel through a wormhole. I know it's kinda dangerous, but it seems so cool, and the film is spectacular. It is entertaining and mentally stimulating, the special effects are top-notch, and Hans Zimmer's score is one of the most beautiful I've ever heard in a sci-fi film. Yes, Matthew McConaughey happens to be here, and I don't like the man, but the film is so great it makes up for him.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)
Kirk is quite depressed because he's on his last space mission of his career, but then the infamous Khan Noonien arrives, and Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise must stop Khan from destroying the universe. This movie is thrilling, has a strong story, good acting and is my favourite of the franchise. And I haven't told you the best part yet: you don't need to see the awful first film to enjoy this one. Isn't that great?
Great picks! I haven't seen the Star Trek movie, but I liked the other too. I wanted Interstellar to be better, but it was still an exceptional film.
ReplyDeleteI thought Gravity was visually stunning but my interest in it drifted at different points. Still a good film. Wrath of Khan is a good entry in the series, you are SO right about the first one-just terribly dull, though I prefer The Voyage Home from the ones with the original cast. Haven't seen Interstellar yet.
ReplyDeleteI went in search of more obscure titles for the week, this is what I came up with:
Capricorn One (1977)-While awaiting the launch of the first manned flight to Mars the command center realizes too late to abort that a malfunction in the support system will kill the astronauts during the journey. Needing a success to continue the program the astronauts are whisked away to a false lunar surface in the desert and the entire mission faked. When the spaceship burns up on reentry and the hoax is at risk of being exposed it becomes a cat and mouse game as the astronauts fight for survival.
Silent Running (1971)-All botanical life on Earth has ceased to exist, ecologist/astronaut Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern) oversees a greenhouse on an orbiting space station to preserve various flora and fauna for future generations. Assisted by three robots and a small human crew who see no value in maintaining the forest, Lowell rebels when orders arrive to destroy the greenhouse in favor of carrying cargo, a decision that puts him at odds with everyone but his mechanical companions. Lowell and his robots are forced to do anything necessary to keep their invaluable greenery alive. A quiet and meditative take for the most part on the shortsightedness of the human race.
The Reluctant Astronaut (1967)-Agoraphobic Roy (Don Knotts) runs the kid spaceship ride at the fairground but his father hopes for better and applies to NASA for him. Surprisingly he’s accepted…as a janitor. After many crazy complications Roy ends up in space as the title pilot! If it sounds preposterous, it is but then it’s a Don Knotts comedy after all.
Gravity is appearing everywhere and I dislike that film. The special effects are great but I just couldn't get into this chick being able to read Chinese and some other parts that I just rolled my eyes...usually falling asleep. Khan is a good movie and the best of the original crew.
ReplyDeleteGravity was a wonderful film. I wasn't a big fan of Interstellar, the third act just lost me. I haven't seen any of the original Star Trek movies, but maybe it's time to do so. Great picks!
ReplyDeleteInterstellar is so....... I don't know. Once they finally got into space there was some beautiful stuff, but then it became "Inception... IN SPACE!" and I had to laugh and roll my eyes a bit. Great score, though, and McConaughey was surprisingly good.
ReplyDeleteI could wax rhapsodic about Gravity for days (even if the emotional climax of the story doesn't work for me as well as others). It's freaking STUNNING.
I still haven't seen Interstellar or Gravity....both seemed to disturb even though they looked like great films. I've never favoured stories about the end of the world or the imminent end of the end but Interstellar has a great story to it.
ReplyDeleteI guess Gravity isn't really about an end. It was just a terribly unlucky accident and she just has to figure a way back to earth.
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