Afternoon pop pickers! On the way to Marley Park to Fatboy Slim & Co. In the meanwhile thought I’d let you know about Duncan Jones’ new movie ‘Moon’ which I went to see last night in the IFI in Dublin.
Duncan introduced the movie and stuck around for a Question and Answer session after the screening.
Moon tells the story of Sam Bell, remarkably played by Sam Rockwell, a worker on a three year solo contract on the Sarang facility on the moon for Lunar Industries.
Made on a budget of a measly five million dollars, Moon tips its hat at some classic sci fi movies such as 2001 and even Alien and it also reminded this viewer of childhood tv memories of Space 1999.
Moon deals with themes of isolation, loneliness, long distance relationships and the age old question of if we were put in the situation would we actually like or even get on with ourselves.
During the Question and Answer session Duncan explained that as a first time director, learning to prioritize became one of the major issues he had to learn about.
I found it quite amusing, as questions were being asked, that some viewers were trying to take more from the movie than was neccessary. One audience member questioned what had happened Sam, the answer to the question is it really doesn’t matter what happened, we must look at the information we were given on screen. As Duncan said ‘I know what happened Sam, that’s all that matters’.
I enjoyed the movie but felt as we were leaving that a number of people went without looking at what genre of movie it was and only attended because of who Duncan’s Dad is.
If I had to ask a question yesterday I think it would have been about his Dad’s part in ‘The man who fell to Earth’ The 1976 (I think) film starred Duncan’s dad, David Bowie. The title song was given a second life by Nirvana in the nineties.
While Bowie’s Space Oddity paid homage to the original Moon landings and space voyages, its good timing that the Duncan Jones film gets its UK and Ireland release around the 40th anniversary on the Neil Armstrong Moon landing and as the Space Ship Endeavour returns to Earth following its stay at the International Space Station.
Go see Moon, independent film at its best!