Look, I understand why people don't go to the movies these days. With DVRs, Netflix/Hulu/Amazon, iTunes Season Passes, and many other ways to get our entertainment at our fingertips, a trip to the local cineplex seems less essential than ever. Even a non 3D ticket often pushes $10 these days, especially when you are in major metro areas. And those 3D tickets cost a couple dollars more, even more for an IMAX showing. Why blow a month's worth of streaming on a ticket to a movie, particularly when it's Clash of the Beige Generic Monsters, or Jack and the Beige Giants.
And frankly, who could blame you? For the most part, movies have failed to figure out how to use 3D. It isn't that it is impossible to use successfully, Avatar showed how well it could be used to enhance the experience, and Pixar and Dreamworks Animation has used it to add depth to their movies. Still, many movies, whether filmed for 3D, or done in post production, have failed to take advantage of it.
Between the inflated prices and the overwhelming competition, it is easy to think that the days of the movie theater are long past, forever inferior to our cozy and increasingly rich home theater experiences. Like the movies palaces of old, it appears our the multiplexes will start closing up, slowly rotting away or being turned into places of worship by upstart evangelical churches.
Then along comes a film like Gravity, and reminds you why the big screen still exists, and why it provides a singular entertainment experience. Unless you are rich enough to afford your own screening room, there is just no way your home setup can match the giant screen, the thunderous sound (and deafening silence), and the communal experience of sitting in a dark room and watching George Clooney and Sandra Bullock try to get back to earth after things go to shit up in space.
Beyond the two main characters, there are very few lines spoken. Still, there is a third character that looms silently in the background of most shots, reminding you of how close, but yet how far, the protagonists are to getting home.
In the twenty years of extensive CG visual effects, most directors still have had a hard time getting the hang of it. Far too many movies are barely a few steps above video game cut scenes. Fortunately, Alfonso Cuaron is not one of those, clearly taking pride it getting it to look like the movie was shot in space. Between the visual effects, the camera work, and the amazing sound design, you could feel the isolation, the danger, and the loneliness of space.
Obviously, the spectacle and the intensity of the setting and the events that take place are the primary draw. The film barely scratches the surface of the main characters, and the dialogue is workmanlike at best. That being said, I don't think those things are necessary, and perhaps would be detrimental to the urgency of our character's situation.
Many of the movies I've recommended recently will do fine seeing on Blu-Ray, DVD, or your streaming service of choice. However, like Pacific Rim, this is one you definitely should experience in a theater, preferably an IMAX or similar format if you can. Seriously, unless you are trying to rescue stranded astronauts, end the government shutdown, or are performing (or having) open heart surgery, go as soon as you can to you nearest theater and buy yourself a ticket. It will be worth your time.
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