Moon a movie Synthesis

I have seen very few serious movies more than twice in my lifetime. My list consists of a handful of movies but amongst the group one remains supreme. Moon a suspenseful mind-twisting movie released in the UK in 2009 has quickly moved in my ranks to the top of my favorite movie list. Directed by Duncan Jones, Moon is a simple movie in which an astronaut is placed in a space station on the moon for a 3-year work period. All alone in the station, excluding a robot Gerti to keep him company, the main character finds out that he is not the only person in the station. As the plot develops the main character Sam Bell, done by Sam Rockwell, discovers that he has a clone. As the movie continues the viewer is left wondering who is the real Sam and wondering if Sam is even human.

Photography

The cinematography in moon although seemingly simple is critical to the development of the movie. In particular the use of different shots, angles, lighting and colors really helps to build the movie. To begin with, color in the movie although bland is purposefully manipulated. Being set on the moon there is very little color introduced in the scenery. The vast majority of the setting is grey black and white. This bland palate of color helps to instill a bland and alone feeling in the movie. In this way the color scheme really helps to perpetuate the initial feeling that Sam is all alone up in the space station. Further the film is shot in very low contrast outside of the space station. This further perpetuated the feeling of loneliness and also creates an eerie feeling. On the other hand when Sam is inside of the station, the movie is shot in very high contrast, making the whites pop out. This helps create an empty and space like feeling. Brighter colors are used to perpetuate a happy feeling. For instance the smiley face on Gerti used to designate emotions is in yellow and blue. Also when the new clone is awakened, he in one scene wears a yellow jump suit, he being a newer clone is more healthy and happy while the original Sam is dressed in a dark jump suit and is in poor emotional and health condition. Second the use of lighting in the movie adds to the affects of photography. In happy and tranquil scenes bright lighting is used to instill a positive feeling. In contrast during moments of chaos or unhappiness, a dark lighting affect is used. Back lighting is used to cast silhouettes and shadows to further help this. Lastly there is a great use of shots and angles. Distant shots help create the space in the movie that instills a feeling of empty and loneliness. When Sam and his clone occupy the space station, the shots are brought in more close to create a feeling of occupancy. Also large up close shots in the movie are used to show certain emotions or to highlight certain events. When Sam’s health takes a turn for the worse in the movie, close-ups are used to show the deterioration of his health. In one instance a birds eye angle coupled with full shot are used to show Sam getting sick in the movie. The shot allows the viewer to see Sam in a fetal position next to a toilet spattered with blood. This image really pushes the fact that Sam is dying, by using the photography to communicate this message to the viewer, Moon’s cinematography does a great job shaping the movie.

Mise En Scene

In Moon all of the shots are a great collection of purposefully placed characters in which different affects help highlight different themes of the movie. I found one particular shot to be particularly brilliant though. In one of the most momentous events in Moon, Sam is approached by his clone about the reality that Sam is also a clone. The scene begins with a great neutral angled full shot in which Sams’ clone is in the front of the frame in focus and Sam is in the back out of focus. The out of focus Sam helps to build the theme of Sam’s decreasing health and the disconnect between the two characters. The viewer’s eyes are immediately attracted to the new Sam’s yellow jump suit, a clean fresh yellow that reflects the fresh new health of the clone. The distance between the two portrays a distance between their mindsets but also parallels their existence. Both Sams are sitting and are in a line in the frame. This alignment creates a similarity between the two clones. The lighting is clear and helps highlight both characters. The closed form shot is composed of two planes, one in which the fresh clone sits and the other where the dying Sam resides. Both placements are pinnacle to the shot; the separation is a non-verbal way of highlighting the separation of the characters physically and mentally in the movie.

Movement

In Moon movement is used to help create a feeling of emptiness or help emphasize the movement seen in the characters. For example, in the scenes where Sam is feeling isolated and alone, the camera pans across the hallways of the space station, searching for Sam to come into view. This movement helps create a feeling of emptiness. On the opposite side, when Sam rides in the lunar mobile, a fixed camera shot is used to emphasize the movement of the vehicle. The camera is focused on Sam and the window he sits next to as the moons scenery races by in the window. Fixed movements such as freeze-frames are used in the movie to emphasize a critical event in the movie. Such is evident when the dying Sam is placed inside of the lunar mobile to pass on. The camera pans out until he dies, then the camera freezes, such shots emphasize an event.

Sound

In Moon there is naturally a general lack of sound in the movie. This further propagates the space like feeling that the movie is set in. Sound in the movie also helps parallel Moon to a similar movie. The sound that does occur in the movie is usually classical piano. Classical music was also used in a similar space movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. This use of sound helps to build the parallels between the two movies. The use of dramatic and mysterious sounds also helps build the suspense when Sam is searching for all of the unawake clones. Lastly the use of sound in the movie helps represent a character’s inner desires. Sam listens to rock in the movie as an escape. His alarm is set to a rock song, when the song ends, Sam must leave his dreaming behind and continue with his reality. Just the same when Sam’s clone begins to discover that both he and Sam are clones, Sam uses rock to drown out his clones plea to listen to his logic.

Acting

The movie is all third person point of view. With this and the fact that there is one main character, Duncan Jones uses different implementations to keep the movie interesting. Sam in the movie has video messages of his wife that he watches. That along with the presence of Gerti, a talking robot: the movie never sees a dull moment and the monologue like acting is very entertaining. With the seldom assistance of Dominique McElligott as the video recorded wife, Sam Rockwell does an excellent job in the first half of the movie acting alone. Sam’s clone is played by Robin Chalk. Robin did an excellent job mimicking the mannerisms of Sam Rockewell and makes it impossible to decipher the two clones apart.

Drama

Moon is set on the dark side of the Moon during current times. The majority of the film mostly takes place in an American space station created to harvest energy. Being set on the moon, naturally very few shots are natural. The movie was filmed in the England a vast majority of which was filmed in studios. Use of computer-generated images was also used. Costumes were exemplary of space like outfits. The cloths were all typically dressed in space suits. In a particular scene the use of a different colorful costume created a large juxtaposition between two clones. As previously discussed the yellow suit helped to separate the two clones. Make up was also used to help create this effect. Sam as time went on became paler and paler, eventually acquiring some bleeding along the mouth. This use of makeup to differentiate the two clones helped develop the story line.

Story

The storyline of moon is one of simplicity with hidden complexities. To expound, Moon follows the classical paradigm described by Aristotle. On the other hand the path of rising action is very tumultuous and sometimes confusing. Duncan Jones does an excellent job keeping the viewers mind running the entire movie. The source of all chaos in the movie is circulated around Sams’ dilemma of whether he is a clone or the model of the clones that will come to follow him. As the movie progresses Sam continues to discover reasons to believe that he is in fact a clone. On the other hand the director uses Sam’s hope of not being a clone to leave the viewer questioning until the end of the movie who and who is not a clone. The rising action reaches a climax when Sam discovers the true answer to his questions about being a clone.

Writing

Moons screenplay writer Nathan Parker was responsible for rewriting the complex story of Moon, which was created by the movies director Duncan Jones. The screenplay is a serious and mysterious piece. Pieced together with moments of humor the screenplay is a very dramatic piece that shapes the intriguing storyline of the movie.

Ideology

Moons classic theme of cloning is very prevalent in today’s society. Moon brings to attention the problems with cloning. In Moon, director Duncan Jones manages to show the tragedies that can follow from cloning. Throughout the movie Sam is built into this very tangible human. As he begins to die and feel remorse for his lack of true life the viewer is instilled with a very remorseful feeling as well. I do not believe that the movie explicitly attempts to persuade the viewer to rise up against cloning but it definitely attempts to create an underlying theme of the negative externalities of cloning and a push for technological advancement. Through the portrayal of the solitary, physical and mental misery of Sam, the reader cannot help feeling a sense of discourse against cloning.

Critique

Seeing that Moon was produced and initially released in the UK, response and celebration of Moon has also been most widely seen in the UK. Moon has won numerous British and American awards for its performance, most notably Moon won the Best Independent British film and Duncan Jones won numerous awards for his directing.

In my opinion Moon is a great success. With a small budget, Moon accomplished what some big budget movies fail to. Moon is a suspenseful, gripping and exciting movie. Actors Sam Rockwell and Robin Chalk both give brilliant performances. The actors ability to create such action and suspense with a small dialogue is incredible. Moon thanks to a brilliant playwright and director is a superb suspense that I strongly recommend.