If you've been looking for an intelligent science fiction movie that relies on a script rather than special effects (a rarity nowadays), Moon starring Sam Rockwell may be just what you're looking for. I stumbled across it while reading the Sundance Film Festival’s web pages. Moon premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2009.
Sam Rockwell plays Sam Bell, caretaker of the Sarang moon base owned by the Lunar Corporation. While he has kept the base up and running for three years, his contract is about to expire and he begins to hear and see strange things. The base mines a precious fuel-boosting element called helium-3 and his only friend is a robot called Gerty (voiced by Kevin Spacey). Moon's themes include genetic manipulation, corporate ethics, and the psychological effects of isolation.
Writer/Director Duncan Jones and co-writer Nathan Parke appear to have crafted a tense sci-fi psychological thriller and given Sam Rockwell another vehicle to show off his excellent acting talents. Sam Rockwell as Zaphod Beeblebrox was the best part of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (probably the only thing that was good about that movie), and he was even better as the lead in Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.
Incidentally, Duncan Jones is also known as Zowie Bowie, David Bowie's son.
A Times Online review gave Moon four out of five stars and called it an "intelligent psychological chamber piece set in space".
This sounds like a perfect role for Sam Rockwell. The plot reminds me of the Solaris update starring George Clooney and the clips and images I've seen are reminiscent of Stanley Kubrick's science fiction classic 2001. Moon is definitely a movie to watch out for.
Sony has acquired the rights and will be releasing Moon in June 2009. You can watch five clips from the movie in the You Tube video below.
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