The romantic sci-fi film Moon has a lot in common with its predecessors, most notably Primer, Blade Runner, and 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Moon and Primer shared an important concept necessary for a “good” sci-fi film--futuristic technology that is grounded in real-world concepts and sciences. By doing this, a film creates a world its audience can understand and therefore relate to. In Moon, much of the technology--from the lunar base to the harvester--was created with input from NASA to ensure accuracy. For example, Jones explains that the astronauts built the base using a material dug out of the moon itself, to save costs. He also discusses how the symptoms affecting the old Sam clone--the headaches, bleeding, pale complexion, dizziness, and fevers--are often caused by acute radiation poisoning, which would be a practical and assured way for the He3 harvesting company to gradually kill the clones. Similarly, the time machine featured in Primer was built with an understanding of the principles of gravity and the Meissner effect, which deals with magnetic fields and superconductors. The characters spoke in technical jargon used by working scientist, further emphasizing the potential reality of the situation. Shane Carruth, the director, was a math major and engineer before becoming a film director, enabling him to develop these more complex ideas. Though these films differ in that the technology in Moon is more easily understood by the common man, while the explanation of the technology in Primer is really only appropriate for those with a math/science background, the connection both these films make to real-world concepts is crucial to the success of the film.
Thematically, both films deal with the breakdown of a relationship. In Moon, that relationship is between Sam and...himself. It explores what it would be like to meet a younger, less knowledgeable version of yourself, and whether you would actually like yourself as a person--in Sam’s case, he struggles greatly with both areas, though eventually finds peace with himself. In Primer, the relationship is between Aaron and Abe, two young colleagues with very different ideas about the use and implications of a time travel machine. They start off the film as companions, as equals, but end as acquaintances who want nothing to do with the other.
Moon also has a lot in common with Blade Runner, thematically, as both deal with the ethics of human cloning. In Blade Runner, the audience immediately learns that human replication has backfired, as the “Blade Runner” is a man hired to eliminate them. Through this plot, the filmmaker is warning us about the dangers of messing with genetic engineering. Though Moon is less obviously opposed to cloning, the suffering each clone endures as he longs for a home he will never reach is enough to suggest that the cloning is wrong, even though it’s only ruining one life. Both films remind us that while technological advancement can mean positive progress, the sacrifices people make are often too great.
Cinematically, Moon and 2001: A Space Odyssey are similar, specifically in the way they created the worlds of the film. Both films make use of extensive modelwork, (though obviously, CGI wasn’t really available to Kubrick). Jones explains how “there’s a depth to the look that you get with models that you just can’t get with CGI...it’s about the detail that you just wouldn’t think to put in”. The robot-characters in both films are also quite similar, speaking to the main character as a human-like friend. The robots also wield more power than their human “owners”--GERTY refuses to let Sam outside and communicates with Earth via live feed (which Sam can’t do), and Hal prevents Frank from reentering the satellite. One more cinematic similarity the two share is the way they underscore scenes shot in space with classical music, which creates an interesting juxtaposition between the past and future.
So, I could find any hint of what you thought of the film and the questions it raises. Your response could have been one written by Dave. I want one written by GERTY. :)
ReplyDeleteI like your mention of Moon's use of model work over CGI, I agree that it lends a nostalgic and sympathetic feel to the film. Though it does sacrifice believability. The fact that it does make it very different, as you said, makes the film stand out more on the market today and I think, is for the better.
ReplyDeleteOn your comment about how the robots in both films hold power over the humans, I thought that it was also interesting how GERTY sometimes doesn't follow what he is told to do by the central figures. For example, while hesitant at first, GERTY does eventually let Sam leave the station despite being told to keep him inside. In addition, at the end, GERTY is the one that suggests to clear his memory to make Sam's plan work. This sort of free will, as well as the emoticons help make GERTY very relatable to the audience, allowing the audience to also become more sympathetic towards the characters.
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