Moon

Duncan Jones’ feature-length debut, Moon follows astronaut Sam Bell as he nears the end of a three-year stint working aboard an isolated base on the title planet – where he is overseeing an effort to send precious resources back to Earth. It’s an incredibly spare premise that’s employed to unexpectedly enthralling effect by Jones, as the filmmaker does a superb job of establishing the central character’s relatively rundown environs – with the movie’s initial lack of plot hardly as problematic as one might’ve surmised, thanks primarily to Rockwell’s compelling, downright hypnotic performance. The actor effortlessly transforms Sam into a figure that the viewer can’t help but root for and sympathize with, which certainly goes a long way towards creating (and maintaining) an atmosphere of suspense that ultimately belies the movie’s low-key sensibilities. Rockwell’s strong work would, of course, be rendered moot were it not for Jones’ consistently compelling directorial choices, as the film’s refreshingly minimalist visuals are complemented by Tony Noble’s jaw-dropping production design and Clint Mansell’s appropriately eerie score. The well-placed inclusion of several impossible-to-predict plot twists, courtesy of screenwriter Nathan Parker, ensure that the movie’s inevitable transformation from drama to thriller is just about seamless, and it’s finally clear that Moon represents one of the most entertaining and flat-out engrossing sci-fi efforts to hit theaters since Steven Soderbergh’s woefully underrated 2002 Solaris remake.

***1/2 out of ****