Spaceman is an interesting idea bit it just doesn’t work
Film review: Spaceman (15) – seen at The Light Cinema, Wisbech and showing on Netflix from Friday
Starring: Adam Sandler, Carey Mulligan and Paul Dano
Director: Johan Renck Run time: One hour, 47 minutes
Having seen Adam Sandler in 2019’s brilliant Uncut Gems I already knew he was much more than just a great comedy actor.
So even though I knew this film hadn’t received the best of reviews, I headed to The Light on Sunday evening with an open mind.
The plot is certainly interesting as Sandler plays Czech astronaut Jakub, on a space race against a South Korea counterpart to travel beyond Jupiter to collect mysterious ancient dust
During his year in space he becomes aware that his marriage with Lenka (Carey Mulligan) is breaking down and comes close to losing his mind, only to be counselled by a spider-like being from the very dawn of time that he Christens Hanus.
Whether the spider is real or just the figment of a fractured, lonely mind is left up to the viewer, but it’s certainly an interesting idea.
Unfortunately it doesn’t quite work. The refreshing spectacle of a space race not involving the USA or NASA is spoilt somewhat by the main Czech characters played by Americas.
I was unable to really invest in Sandler or Mulligan’s characters and even though Dano was superb as the voice of Hanus, the alien didn’t move me, even when it went all ‘ET’ towards the end of the movie.
Spaceman will soon be transferring to Netflix and, had I been watching at home, I probably wouldn’t have turned off. But I wouldn’t be raving about it at work the next day either.
There is a message here too, but it’s not particularly deep, poignant or original. It’s basically: “If you find someone special, treat them with love and respect or they might leave you.” Most of us don’t need a trip to space and marriage counselling from an alien arachnid to figure that one out.
Rating: 6/10
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