While Alfonso Cuarón’s “Gravity” is assuredly a film that will split audiences down the middle as to what its intent is, I’d dare say it’s a film for both fractions of audiences. While it is a movie somewhat based on spiritual themes, it’s also a perfectly fine film that the secular audience that is more fascinated in character themes and the inherent conflict faced by Sandra Bullock’s character Dr. Stone.
Much of Dr. Stone’s dilemma is summed up by the moment when she’s faced with a major sacrifice mid-way that could very well spell doom for everyone involved. The ship and the tethers are of course metaphors for the birthing process that parallels Dr. Stone’s own journey in to space that ends in a violent crash and involves her fighting for her life. Perhaps the entire space walk and battle for some sense of life isn’t really a space walk, but is just one giant symbolic journey in to the mind of a woman fighting to save her child.
Dr. Stone is a woman still grieving from the loss of her child, and she’s hell bent on not just controlling her entire environment, but running away from her grief. Stone is focused on keeping every intricate detail in place, and to specifics of her needs, despite her commander’s demands that she just allow the chips to fall where they may. This becomes especially trying when the ship is hit by shrapnel in space that collides with the crew.
Only when Dr. Stone finally submits to the idea that control is an illusion, does she really begin to understand the severity of the situation and that she can come out of it generally unscathed, in the end. You just can’t control everything, and sometimes you just have to let go of our pain and move forward. Dr. Stone’s journey back to safety is a brilliant demonstration of utilizing the environment to help tell a story, and is often a jarring and disorienting thriller. “Gravity” benefits from repeated viewings and is yet another masterstroke from Cuarón.
The Gravity DVD and Blu-Ray release comes filled to the brim with extras for fans of the film. “Gravity Mission Control” is a 107 minute look at the making of Cuarón’s film. It’s an extensive, exhaustive, and insightful look behind the scenes of the filming, explorations of the script development, difficulties behind the filming, right down to editing and previsualization. “Mission Control” garners nine chapters ranging between ten to twenty minutes in length, all incredibly detailed for folks that loved the film.
“Shot Breakdown” is a thirty seven minute look at the more important shots of the film, and garners five chapters ranging between five to ten minutes in length. “Aningaaq: A Short Film by Jonás Cuarón” is a ten minute short film from co-writer Jonás Cuarón, featuring Dr. Stone, who meets a fishermen after she lands on Earth. It includes an optional introduction from Alfonso and son Jonás. “Collision Point: The Race to Clean Up Space” is a twenty two minute documentary narrated by Ed Harris, who discusses the actual event that inspired “Gravity,” and its impact on filming.