Today, I observed Ad Astra on a sign on the wall of the suit-up room at Kennedy Soace Center while watching the SpaceX Crew 1 launch. That reminded me that I had marked this film on HBO Max for watching at a later date. So I decided to watch it today. It turned out to be exactly what I had predetermined it to be though, a movie long on special effects and not very intellectually interesting. One of those films that leaves way too much to the viewers' imagination as to the theme being portrayed. Only after watching a couple of critical reviews online, did I start to understand this movie. I found it interesting enough to want to figure out the story I had just seen. So I watch several critical review videos. One critic points out concept of what I also believe to be one of the seminal science fiction movies, 2001: A Space Odyssey. That what E.T. looks like is not as important as the description of the human experience hat takes place during the search. Or, space exploration without any preconceived notions about what you may find.
Too many sci-if stories are about "the search for extraterrestrial life". Life that could be either friendly or very unfriendly. I've always considered antagonistic alien depictions to be more about scaring the viewer or reader of the story, kind of like horror stories. The very best scI-fi stories, in my opinion, leaves the concept of what alien life is and what it is about completely up to ones' imagination. Because I happen to believe that if there really is extraterrestrial life out there, then it likely will not be bi-pedal, or humanoid, or mammalian, or even lizard-like. Even Little Green Men are most likely too humanistic a concept to be realistic.
Instead, I agree with those who interpret this movie to be about considering the human psychological analysis of the question of extraterrestrial life. How finding, or alternatively not finding it could affect humanity. What would such a profound discovery, or the realization that we are truly alone in this universe mean for humanity? Like most movies, I tend to think of its impact as a study of the affect the experience has on us, or the way it changes our thinking about things. Instead of a movie or it's backstory being purposed to scare us, they should make us think. To think about the unthinkable. Or, open our minds to previously unconsidered possibilities. And not just about finding new ways to scare us, as most of the horror genre seems to be about.
AD ASTRA THEN, can be seen as a exploration of the consequences that such contemplations have one us. How our lives might be changed by an encounter with extraterrestrial life. Or, alternatively, by reaching the conclusion that there is nothing else out there in the universe. Again, the special effects are interesting, the characters, as vaguely defined as they are, both present an air of mystery for the viewer that is more thoughtfully provocative than shocking or awe-inspiring. So, in that regard this is a good movie. Not great, but good enough to watch. Had I written the crypt though, I would have explored the renewed personal relationship between the Brad Pitt and Liv Tyler characters to create a less mysterious ending to the story line.
Too many sci-if stories are about "the search for extraterrestrial life". Life that could be either friendly or very unfriendly. I've always considered antagonistic alien depictions to be more about scaring the viewer or reader of the story, kind of like horror stories. The very best scI-fi stories, in my opinion, leaves the concept of what alien life is and what it is about completely up to ones' imagination. Because I happen to believe that if there really is extraterrestrial life out there, then it likely will not be bi-pedal, or humanoid, or mammalian, or even lizard-like. Even Little Green Men are most likely too humanistic a concept to be realistic.
Instead, I agree with those who interpret this movie to be about considering the human psychological analysis of the question of extraterrestrial life. How finding, or alternatively not finding it could affect humanity. What would such a profound discovery, or the realization that we are truly alone in this universe mean for humanity? Like most movies, I tend to think of its impact as a study of the affect the experience has on us, or the way it changes our thinking about things. Instead of a movie or it's backstory being purposed to scare us, they should make us think. To think about the unthinkable. Or, open our minds to previously unconsidered possibilities. And not just about finding new ways to scare us, as most of the horror genre seems to be about.
AD ASTRA THEN, can be seen as a exploration of the consequences that such contemplations have one us. How our lives might be changed by an encounter with extraterrestrial life. Or, alternatively, by reaching the conclusion that there is nothing else out there in the universe. Again, the special effects are interesting, the characters, as vaguely defined as they are, both present an air of mystery for the viewer that is more thoughtfully provocative than shocking or awe-inspiring. So, in that regard this is a good movie. Not great, but good enough to watch. Had I written the crypt though, I would have explored the renewed personal relationship between the Brad Pitt and Liv Tyler characters to create a less mysterious ending to the story line.
