Spaceman

Don't get me wrong, this is a very well made film with decent acting, good CGI, some beautiful cinematography and an interesting premise about loneliness, loss and mental illness. However the script, the plot and the pacing simply kill any momentum that the movie tries to have. It is definitely a cure for insomnia. The movie ends up being a series of moments of Adam Sandlers life that an imaginary spider whispers to him. Seriously. The first 15 minutes are at least vaguely interesting, but all the bits with Carey Mulligan are dull. I love grown up sci-fi, but this movie definitely jumps the shark, or in this case the spider.

Wow! Where to begin. What a beautiful movie. Adam Sandler just knocked me out with this. It's a story of love lost and regrets. It is a slow burn. But. Well worth it. Not sure about the bad reviews. This is an amazing movie. The cgi is great. The acting pitch perfect. There is no wasted moment. It just flows very nicely. The pacing is on point. Whoever thought a spider would be so smart and all knowing. Hanush was a great navigator for this story. This movie has to be experienced. I can understand some people may not get it or like it. But. This movie is right up there with The Notebook as far as romance goes. Just watch it. Well worth it.

Despite a beginning that showed some promise, this is a mess. It begins with Adam Sandler as an astronaut traveling towards a mysterious purple cloud to see what's what with that, but instead of a space drama we get a marital drama involving Sandler's character and his pregnant wife (Carey Mulligan in the least interesting performance I've ever seen her give) on Earth who has decided that while he is alone in space is a good time to announce she's leaving him! During this flight the astronaut suddenly has a companion who looks very much like a gigantic multi-legged, multi-eyed speaking spider who may or may not be a hallucination. The spider and the astronaut talk endlessly about a variety of things but mainly his negligence to what matters the most in life, his wife and his life on Earth. Now, one can understand why she would not want to be married to a man who leaves her behind to go out into space, but she kind of signed up for this to begin with so that didn't make much sense to me, especially given it's only a one year trip that he is halfway through. It also didn't make sense to me that the astronaut is so depressed and perhaps hallucinatory after those first 6 months. This seems an awfully short time for an experienced astronaut trained for this to start unraveling. How does it end? Well, you'll have to watch it to find that out, but trust me, you will be bored with a film that only gets worse as it goes along.

I was hoping for some sci-fi fun here and man was this movie a drag. Adam Sandler moping about how he's a bad husband for following his lifelong career towards the razors edge of discovery instead of suddenly dropping everything and staying home with his pregnant wife. It's indistinct just how much she knew going into their relationship about his career path, likely intentional because a little thought makes it extremely unlikely that she'd be in any position to object by the time a mission like that is undertaken. The movie is filled with little nitpicks like that, which will drive an actual sci-fi fan crazy. This isn't real sci-fi, it's nonsense. Do they introduce an alien? Sure. Does it's being an alien matter in any way? No, it might as well have been a ghost. In fact, it could be interpreted that it was a hallucination all along when you think about it. Did his being in space matter in any way? No, it could have been any job that caused the husband to be away instead of at home with his wife. Soldier, oil rig worker, some sort of arctic scientist, etc. All of the "sci-fi" elements were nonsensical and only served to push the plot in the direction the writer wanted, they didn't make any real sense. This felt like a bad version of Project Hail Mary, if you thought this had potential but failed on an intellectual level I recommend that book.

This screenplay will touch upon more and deeper psychological issues than most viewers are able or ready to explore within their own psyche. Hence, reviews such as, "it fails to consistently engage with its most interesting ideas." I.e., one's inward journey into their own psyche is of little to no interest for the average person. And... that is precisely why the Earth is full of problems caused by human infestation -- to quote V-ger (ST:TMP). Movies addressing psychological issues and motifs are gaining traction in the movie industry, and can make quite a profit -- such as Barbie. For the rest of us who are open to considering what lay beyond our inner limitations, this is an absolutely wonderful movie, perfectly juxtaposing innerspace with outerspace, and the cyclical dichotomy of the end being the beginning, at multiple levels. The direction and editing establish an absolutely perfect pace for the premise of solo space travel and introspection, analogous to Silent Running (1972). The set design is remarkably plausible. Last but not least, this is the best performance by Adam Sandler since Punch Drunk Love (2002). And the irony in this movie is that when Sandler overcomes whatever issues keep him from taking on deep and serious roles -- in a manner similar to the character he plays in this movie -- he is absolutely amazing in revealing the gift of his own personal depth. (Minus one star for psychological issues not written by, or without consultation of, psychology experts.)

Adam Sandler does a good job in this drama, but you're probably asking yourself "Why the spider"? Well, It is the most common fear among people (Arachnophobia). But do you know what are people even more afraid of? Accepting the truths about themselves and being completely honest with yourself. Now, combine all that and you get answers to everything about this, actually decent movie. That is why the spider crawls out of him in his dreams (subconscious), which is the beginning of his transformation and self-learning, self-knowledge. To realize you are selfish, a coward, and victim-mentality, it takes strength, but most of all "no filters about yourself". Are you a bad person? Can you go that deep into your mind to fight your demons? Just as a spider (at the beginning) so is self-learning. It is ugly and hard until you finally reach the goal - wanting to and eventually changing your wrong ways and also shedding parts of you (selfishness, bitterness, anger, victim mentality). Most people never reach this transformation, but he did. It started as an "ugly" huge spider, one, you later get to love. It is the TRUTH - The truth is ugly at the beginning but eventually, it sets you free, you start to love it, admire it, and learn. The truth about who you are, what, and why you did wrong. It is the ultimate goal and the beginning of a new life to overcome that battle and become fully honest with yourself. IS THE SPIDER REAL? I think not. I think Hanush is not real, it is Adam's (Jakob) projection of his subconscious, guilt, anger, and bitterness, but also all good inside, like love, acceptance, and understanding. That deep need to change what later becomes truth and ultimately the realization of his mistakes. It sets him free to open up and become a selfless, better man. At the same time, he ends battles within, he lets go of guilt, sadness, regret, and bitterness... they are all gone in the nebula, and that is why clear skies open.