AmateurMovieReviews.com

By Simon Woodhouse

For many people, Science Fiction movies are the domain of talking robots, exploding spaceships and friendly (or not so friendly) aliens. They're popcorn movies that require little attention to understand, and provide quick and easy entertainment. But it isn't always like that. Once in a while a serious Sci-Fi movie comes along. When I say serious, I mean a film where the actors act, the dialogue is believable and very few things explode. If you like that sort of Sci-Fi, you'll like Solaris. If you're one of the robots/aliens/explosions crowd, it almost certainly won't be for you. Me, I like a little from column A and a little from column B.

Solaris is a remake of a Russian Sci-Fi movie from the early 70s, also called Solaris (surprise surprise), and directed by Andrei Tarkovsky. I'm not really a fan of Russian cinema, which means I haven't seen and can't comment on the original, but if it's half as good as this remake, then it's a winner.

The remake tells the story of Dr. Chris Kelvin (George Clooney), a recently widowed psychologist who's sent to investigate strange goings on aboard a space station orbiting the planet Solaris. He arrives to find some of the crew dead, and the two remaining shipmates, Snow (Jeremy Davies) and Dr. Helen Gordon (Viola Davis), teetering on the brink of insanity. It's Kelvin's job to find out what's going on, but neither of the two survivors are willing to talk, telling him he'll understand what's happening when it happens to him. As the opening reel progresses, Kelvin is constantly reliving life with his wife Rheya (Natascha McElhone), through a series of lengthy flashbacks. These quickly show the depth of their love, and the pain he's still feeling from her loss.

Before he can get to grips with what's happening on the space station, Rheya appears before him. But she's not a ghost, or something only he can see, she's real, he can touch her and she can remember things from their past. However, Kelvin is a psychologist, unable to belief she's real and therefore forced to prove to himself she's not. Most films save the real dramatic, heart-wrenching scenes right until the end, but not Solaris. The sequence where Kelvin tries to 'dispose' of Rheya is one that really pulls on the heartstrings. Anyway, he doesn't succeed and she comes back, so he's forced to face whatever it is that's happening on the station.

A constant backdrop to Kelvin's emotional ups and downs; the planet of Solaris sits below the station like a mute supporting character. It's a beautifully drawn special effect, surrounded by clouds of violet coloured mist and set in a starless background. In fact the whole look and feel of the film is a superbly rendered mixture of darkness and light. The visuals and the dialogue form a perfect match, insomuch as they're both understated but spot on. Heavy patches of shadow and darkness blend in with the characters' moods, and lots of lengthy close-ups show what Kelvin and the other crewmembers are thinking, rather than having them constantly voice their emotions.

As the film progresses and more of Kelvin's and Rheya's past is revealed, the tension aboard the space station starts to build. Snow and Gordon, the other two crew members, are also experiencing a situation similar to Kelvin's, and they start to hypothesise it's the result of a force emanating from the surface of Solaris. But because Rheya seems so real, Kelvin begins to accept she is, and feels unable to leave her on the station, even though its orbit is decaying and soon it'll crash into the planet.

I'd never really been a fan of Clooney's up until I saw this film, but here he shows just what a strong actor he is. Natascha McElhone also turns in a top-notch performance (why isn't she in more films?). Playing the jittery character of Snow, Jeremy Davies doesn't appear to be acting at all, and he's so easy to watch it's a shame he doesn't get more screen time. Viola Davis, the forth of the principle quartet, also gives a good account of herself, but her character is the hardest to like and so I enjoyed her performance the least (but that's not to say she wasn't as good as the others).

If you like films that require you to use your brain (and not just to direct your hand from the popcorn bucket to your mouth), then Solaris is for you. The pace and the visuals reminded me of such other Sci-Fi classics as Blade Runner, Alien and 2001. The plot twists and turns, and cleverly reveals character details in a steady stream, which means they gradually become more complex. It's the sort of film that makes you wish all Sci-Fi movies put more emphasis on people, rather than aliens, robots and explosions.