Moon (2009) [Blu-ray]
Drama | Mystery | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) is nearing the completion of his 3-year-long contract with Lunar Industries, mining Earth's primary source of energy on the dark side of the moon. Alone with only the base's vigilant computer Gerty (voiced by Oscar-Winner Kevin Spacey, 1999 Best Actor, American Beauty) as his sole companion, Bell's extended isolation has taken its toll. His only link to the outside world comes from satellite messages from his wife and young daughter. He longs to return home, but a terrible accident on the lunar surface leads to a disturbing discovery that contributes to his growing sense of paranoia and dislocation so many miles away from home. Moon is an engrossing, intelligent sci-fi thriller that ranks with genre classics like 2001: A Space Odyssey.

Storyline: Sam Bell has a three year contract to work for Lunar Industries. For the contract's entire duration, he is the sole employee based at their lunar station. His primary job responsibility is to harvest and periodically rocket back to Earth supplies of helium-3, the current clean and abundant fuel used on Earth. There is no direct communication link available between the lunar station and Earth, so his only direct real-time interaction is with GERTY, the intelligent computer whose function is to attend to his day to day needs. With such little human contact and all of it indirect, he feels that three years is far too long to be so isolated; he knows he is beginning to hallucinate as the end of his three years approaches. All he wants is to return to Earth to be with his wife Tess and their infant daughter Eve, who was born just prior to his leaving for this job. With two weeks to go, he gets into an accident at one of the mechanical harvesters and is rendered unconscious. Injured, he ... Written by Huggo

Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Martin Liebman, December 18, 2009 The power of the moon, the power of our future.

No lasers, no explosions, no aliens, no problem. Director Duncan Jones' Moon is a member of a lost species, a true work of Science Fiction art that explores not just outer space but the deepest chasms of mankind, the film set on the moon but standing firmly in the midst of the human condition where it delves into the deepest secrets of the soul, a place as mysterious as the dark side of the moon itself. Indeed, Moon is a reflection of everything that makes man a man, the film a detached yet deeply personal account of one individual's struggle to cope with both isolation and the revelation of a dark and disturbing secret while also commenting on humanity's evolved yet nevertheless disconnected and heartless ways. Set in a future where science and technology have once again revolutionized the world but where the human species' morality is questioned under the guise of a tormented soul, Moon is one this generation's -- and history's -- finest examples of Science Fiction done absolutely right.

Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell, Galaxy Quest) is working for Lunar Industries, a company harvesting "Helium 3" from the surface of the moon, the compound now providing 70% of the Earth's total energy. The lone man stationed inside a small lunar base and charged with keeping the automated "harvester" machines operational, Sam is closing in on the end of his three-year tour on the dark side of the moon. Only two weeks remain before Sam can once again be reunited with his wife and daughter on Earth, but with the facility's communications system on the fritz, Sam slowly begins hallucinating, seeing objects and people that cannot, in fact, be with him on the moon. Traversing the lunar surface inside a rover while on a routine mission, Sam accidentally collides with a harvester and awakens in the facility's infirmary where his lone companion, a robot dubbed GERTY (voiced by Kevin Spacey, 21), informs him that he's suffered serious trauma. As Sam recovers and attempts to piece together his hallucinations and accident, he becomes aware of a disturbing fact that will forever alter everything he once knew about Lunar Industries, his time on the moon, his family, and his very essence.

Moon exemplifies the strengths of minimalist filmmaking. With bland but functional set design, a singular and not particularly vast primary location, and minimal special effects, Moon must rely not on its look but rather its feel, its script rather than its action, its acting rather than its visual effects to succeed in a world where its strengths have so often been reduced to pesky necessities in lesser but louder films. Moon recalls the finest of story-driven filmmaking; only its subtly seamless special effects, convincing near-future setting, and production date differentiate it from genre classics of decades past. Indeed, the film's contemplative rather than action-oriented plot and unhurried rather than kinetic direction might come as something of a shock to audiences unfamiliar with more deliberate Science Fiction. Nevertheless, viewers willing to accept the Moon's drastically minimalist structure -- which is in every way reflective of the film's overreaching, powerful, and oftentimes emotionally draining themes -- will be richly rewarded with a cinematic masterpiece that poses more questions than it answers in the midst of a plot that is at once both complex and simple, layered with subtexts, secrets, and, indeed, a journey into the soul of a single man but a commentary on mankind itself.

Moon's deliberate and idea-oriented structure is never a hindrance to its pacing and, indeed, the film retains a mesmerizing quality throughout as the story reveals its secrets and slowly crescendos in a haunting third act that does inject slight elements of action and urgency into an otherwise calculated and contemplative pace. Much like the surface of the film's title location, Moon is a cold picture with a terrain that's difficult to explore but boundlessly fascinating to traverse. The picture takes viewers on an enthralling journey that is in many ways a microcosm of society as evidenced by its themes of isolation, abandonment, hopes come and gone, confusion, greed, truth, consequences, and misdirections. Few films have ever developed a structure of a superficial story, characters, and deeper themes that all at once are both simply and complexly played as those that define Moon. This is multi-layered, thought-provoking, and captivating stuff, the film the sort that demands repeat viewings and extensive contemplation on its many interconnected themes and meanings. What is a man? Is it corporeal existence? An invisible soul? Memories? Experiences? What is his beginning, and where is his end? Moon asks these questions both below the surface of its story and gradually injects them into the overreaching plot of the film, though as with any such philosophical posits, they are best left answered by those that choose to experience all Moon has to offer.

Finally, and on a much more familiar and easily identifiable scale, Moon boasts strong acting and superb production values that make this modern genre throwback classic complete. Sam Rockwell delivers a multi-faceted and altogether brilliant effort as the film's lead and solitary main character; like the film, his effort is reflective of the overall deliberateness and contemplative structure the film employs. His depiction of an ordinary man in unusual circumstances and the subsequent discoveries that come to alter his perspective on the worlds around him are played to chilling perfection, an altogether wonderful effort that's as spellbinding as the film itself. GERTY, Sam's lone companion, is voiced by Kevin Spacey; the Oscar-winning actor lends to the character a monotone, dry, and unassuming vocal personality, offset only by a small display that shows color representations of basic smiley faces that often prove more revealing of both GERTY's true motivations and mannerisms, not to mention how the machine's knowledge of events are conveyed through well-timed faces of happiness, regret, confusion, or secrecy. Additionally, the minimal housing and staging area as seen in the film becomes something of a character in and of itself; it's rather barren, sterile, and dull. Colors are limited primarily to instrument readouts, a few scattered posters and photographs, and several random objects. It's functional but bare, modern and minimalist but grimy around the edges, its lack of appeal disheartening and, like everything else in the film, makes more sense in light of the revelations throughout. Last but certainly not least is Composer Clint Mansell's (Requiem For a Dream) brilliantly haunting score. Unsettling but oddly appealing, the piano-heavy theme in particular makes for a dark, reflective piece that's the perfect compliment to a simple, mysterious, yet compelling and deeply-rooted film.

A throwback Science Fiction film that's both wonderfully yet minimally crafted and with a far more complex meaning beneath its simple exterior that slowly rises to the forefront as the picture moves forward, Moon is a spellbinding work of cinematic art that's the antithesis of the big-budget and effects-laden blockbuster, but it proves beyond a shadow of a doubt that the "less is more" approach still works even in a cinema world that seems to have forgotten the importance of story, theme, and substance over flash, pomp, and volume. Accentuated by a winning performance from Sam Rockwell, superb direction, excellent set design, and a hauntingly effective score, Moon is a must-see picture that hearkens back to the days of cerebral Science Fiction, the film enthralling and not soon forgotten. Sony's Blu-ray release is equally splendid. The disc boasts a practically reference-grade technical presentation and a strong supporting cast of extras. Moon comes strongly recommended.
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