March 31, 2009
Moon
I reviewed this film a few weeks ago, but Fett loved it so much he wanted to give you his own take on it. And since he had an interview with Duncan Jones to back it up, I figured we might as well let him.
Starring: Sam Rockwell
Rating: 9/10
Directed By: Duncan Jones
Runtime: 97 minutes
Starring: Sam Rockwell
Rating: 9/10
Directed By: Duncan Jones
Runtime: 97 minutes
Out of all of the films screening at SXSW this year, Moon was definitely the one I was most excited about. As referenced in our Janet Pierson interview, "Moon" is directed by Duncan Jones and stars a one-man cast of Sam Rockwell. For those that are unaware, or otherwise did not watch our SXSW pre-reporting, (you can still see it on the crackle channel under "Fett's Guide to 09,") Duncan Jones was first known to the world as David Bowie's son, who was born in 1976 as Zowie Bowie. I don't know if I can accurately portray the thoughts I had going into this interview and this film knowing Duncan's immediate lineage without assuming a lot about the average person's knowledge of David Bowie and his music, acting, and patterns of constant re-integration into modern media. Perhaps it would be better to simply ask that everyone reading this run out and find a copy of Bowie's "Space Oddity," better known colloquially as "Ground Control to Major Tom." The song tells a haunting tale of a lone astronaut stranded in space, and plays to NASA's biggest fears in the early days of the space race- that our efforts to land a man on the Moon would result in a constantly orbiting dead astronaut. Further, Bowie played an agoraphobic alien in The Man Who Fell to Earth, one of the most astringent and obscure alien related films in pop culture to date. Any child that grew up in this sort of environment must have been affected in very basic unseen ways by his father's work. After seeing the film, I will take this a step further and point out that because of Duncan's age, he was very likely a link between his father and current media- evidenced by Bowie's constant reinvention and collaboration with artists such as Trent Reznor.
The basic idea that I'm working toward here is that it takes a strong mind to keep your own artistic paradigm while finding ways to, as Duncan tweeted me regarding Ridley Scott's movies, "nick things" from the most powerful artists and directors on record. I see Stanley Kubrick's ghost haunting the corridors of Moon. Every surface and structure could have been housed inside Ridley Scott's Nostromo, the space vehicle in the original Alien. Does Moon steal things from other movies? Sure it does. But, like a sci-fi Quentin Tarantino, Duncan Jones places only the best elements into the combination. Like a Lunar Reeses' Peanut Butter cup spiked with hallucinogenic mushroom dust, Moon takes from Stanley Kubrick and Ridley Scott, lays out a human, realistic, science fiction world and then slowly starts to go south on you...
The choice of Sam Rockwell was a divine choice, which was all Duncan Jones. Sam, who recently played Zaphod Beeblebrox, the two-headed space pirate in Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, brings a new sci-fi sensibility to some very old ideas that are recombined in a classically unique way. While many were disappointed by the general treatment of the source material in that film, I still am and have always been an avid fan of sci-fi in general, and any film bringing a snarky, bizarre humor to the generally stark and tech-obsessed genre that is sci-fi, is cool by me. Needless to say, Sam Rockwell's portrayal of Zaphod probably allowed Jones to see that he could play two very distinct parts of a whole at the same time. As you will see from our interview, this was an essential skill for any actor chosen for this role. Plus, any actor that can give a three-word answer to a red carpet question and make you love him for it, is my kind of deceptively underestimated genius.
I am going to go out on a limb here and reference Magnificent Bastard's review, and say that I agree wholeheartedly with what he says. Do not seek out any media on this film. There is a twist...and to say much more would ruin the fact that the film is designed to sneak up you in unexpected ways.
I am sitting here in the Press Lounge of AFI Dallas feverishly writing this mini-review in an effort to get this article out. I just had to ignore one of my favorite live action comic idols, Patrick Warburton, for the sake of you, our dear readers. (Long Live the Tick!) Why the rush? Moon is screening this Thursday at AFI Dallas, and due to the lack of coordinating proper representation by the studio, there will be no celebrity presentation for Moon. This leads me to believe that there may not be a lot of attention for this film, as most of the films here, especially those featuring A-List stars, have some semblance of publicity.
If you missed it at SXSW, get with the space program and get on board your local shuttle for Dallas! It is playing Thursday, April 2nd at 8:00pm at the
AMC NorthPark 15 - Theater 2. Tickets can be purchased at AFI Dallas online for $8.50. IT IS WORTH THE DRIVE, TRAVEL, OR DE-ORBIT BURN, as the case may be. Please come support Duncan Jones first major film release. He also has a "Blade Runner" homage in the works next...
PLUS! We have more of this interview, but Sony Pictures Classics has requested we hold it for a time closer to the release of the film. So keep checking back, and one day we will post the raw of the interview.
From Crackle:
Duncan Jones, you are a badass. I can't wait to meet you again. You disarmed me so completely on the red carpet, I could not help but fall in love with your film, and will to do anything I can to promote it.
This is the Fett, currently in a free-return orbit around the Moon, signing off.