Ad Astra
Ten Second Review: An enjoyable and rather gripping space epic that doesn’t quite reach the heights of recent space and alien flicks.
Brad Pitt in a space adventure? Yes please. That’s about all the convincing I needed. No trailer, not even a poster, just a name and a concept. I know that’s a rather callous and reductive way to view a film but it’s simultaneously invigorating to see a film that you know so little about. Was I sitting down to an action packed 100 minute blockbuster, an edge of your seat space horror or a thrill ride of emotional turbulence and space travel? More importantly, how do I choose a cinema snack under these conditions? What would even be appropriate?
Our story centres on Roy McBride (Brad Pitt), an accomplished armed forces man of the space division, living in the shadow of his even more accomplished father. We open on the International Space Antenna where an immense power surge is causing issues with the electronics. After safely getting to the ground, McBride is called in for debriefing. When the military learn that a far off expedition lead by McBride’s Father - thought to be lost decades ago - might be behind the surges, it falls to Roy to try and contact his father and get him to stop. As he departs Earth for the Mars base, McBride will go on a journey of exploration in to the farthest depths of our solar system and the darkest parts of himself.
So what did I think of Apocalypse Now 2: Interstellar Boogaloo? Stupid snowclones aside, this film is a little hard to pin down. I enjoyed it, I think, but don’t think I’ll remember it in any great detail. My earlier Brad Pitt gag aside, his performance is worth turning up for. A delicate and serious tone with a sincerely felt emotion throughout. Writing about life’s biggest questions (why are we here? Are we alone? What is truly important?) will almost always end up sounding trite and hammy in anyone’s hands but Pitt, rather like his character, pretty much sticks the landing throughout.
The actual space travel, as well as the framing of the shots themselves, looks stunning. It’s very much a feast for the eyes. From the landscapes and the planet shots to the set pieces and action, this film is shot beautifully. There are moments where you grab your seat and hold your breath cause of the content and others where you do it because of the image on screen.
So why then did it leave me cold? I suppose a fair place to start is the Apocalypse Now and Interstellar comparisons I alluded to. The film doesn’t feel wholly new and while certainly thrilling at points, I couldn’t describe it as exciting. From the outset you can guess with little variance where it’s going. There were a couple of rather enjoyable (and certainly necessary) cut-ins in McBride’s mission, but it felt a touch paint-by-numbers-astro-Greek-tragedy. As ridiculous as that sounds, a great many of you know exactly what I mean.
The film is not in anyway badly executed, it just feels as though we’ve seen it before, and recently at that.
While there is undoubtedly a great many films it could be compared to, an interesting example might be Arrival. Key there was the way that the writer, adapters and director subverted your expectation of what you expect from a close encounters film. There were the parts you expect; terror at the arrival, international disputes and advanced technology, but it was in the structure of the film and departures from expectation that you find what sticks with you.
As I said, Ad Astra is a well made and quite enjoyable version of what it is, but you might already have a favourite version of that film with a little more character. An enjoyable watch that I probably wouldn’t turn off if it came on TV, but probably not the space film I’ll turn too to get my fix.
