Ad Astra: Brad Pitt is Out of This World
My experience watching James Gray's space thriller Ad Astra is a memorable one. I entered a contest to attend the United States screening at the National Geographic Museum in Washington D.C. As I was walking past the White House hours later I received my confirmation that I had won a ticket to the screening and my heart immediately busted. I have been a big Brad Pitt fan for a while and the opportunity to see his new movie and see him introduce it was a dream come true. The next day I arrived at the theater two hours early to stand in line and I was given a seat after my waiting. I won't forget sitting in the theater filled with NASA employees and the movie's stimulating soundtrack playing as we all waited for the iconic actor to step out. When they called his name everyone immediately stood up and erupted in cheers. I was in awe as I watched him walk across the stage and speak about the movie. From there I entered euphoria.
Brad Pitt plays Roy Mcbride, a veteran US astronaut, who is inspired by his father. His father, played by Tommy Lee Jones, is a legend in space travel and disappeared 30 years ago to Neptune on the Lima Project to find intelligent life in the universe. Roy is approached by government officials to take a shuttle to the moon and get on a craft headed to Mars to be close enough to communicate with his father. There are weird occurrences happening and government officials believe that it is caused by Roy's father and that he still alive.
Mcbride is faced with the challenges of loneliness, freaked-out astronauts, raging monkeys and the hard truth he discovers. These obstacles move the story along and allow Mcbride to discover himself and who he is. Pitt brings complexity to the role. The constant inner monologues and emotional scenes demonstrate the humanity of the character. There are a lot of sides to him. These dark moments set the tone for the rest of the film. As the film goes on he sheds his icy exterior seen when he gives the constant psychological evaluations and audiences see him start to break down in each one. He is going through a space odyssey as well as a personal odyssey. The scene of the single tear coming from Pitt's eye shows the brokenness of this character who has devoted his whole life to find out if his father is alive and having his father' image shattered right before his eyes.
The director James Gray creates dazzling and distressing sci-fi scenes from beginning to end of the film. Each take was visually dazzling and keeps audiences invested in this futuristic landscape Gray created. In this world, the moon is a popular tourist location and as Roy continues on his journey the visuals only get more breathtaking. It is designed for IMAX screens in the cinema. Ad Astra contains visual elements similar to Star Wars, 2001: A Space Odyssey and Blade Runner: 2049. It distinguishes itself from many other space movies with its sci-fi feel and exploration of a man's emotions. It explores humanity and its place in the big universe. The film features many sequences that are absolutely terrifying but awing and beautiful at the same time. The double blue rings of Neptune was arguably the most memorable image of the film.