One creepy moonage daydream

It only took him one full-length movie, but Duncan Jones is officially in space.

Of course, going extraterrestrial shouldn't be seen as much of a surprise considering the director is the son of the glam-rocking, spiders-from-Mars-creating musician David Bowie.

The real surprise, then, is the fact that Moon - which could have easily been seen as Jones's attempt to latch onto his father's fame - is such an effective science fiction film.

It all takes place in the near future on the lunar base Sarang, where hero Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell, Frost/Nixon) is about to finish up a three-year contract with Lunar Industries. He has been tasked with extracting helium-3 and sending it back to Earth, working to reverse the planet's energy crisis.

Sam's problems arise when, after an accident in a lunar rover, he wakes up back at the base with no knowledge of how he got there. Soon, there are two versions of him walking around Sarang at the same time, which the original Sam doesn't take to terribly well. Soon, questions arise: Who is Sam, really? What's his actual purpose on the base? How long has he really been there, and who's really behind it all?

Luckily, considering the cast is so small, the film's greatest strength is its development of its main character. Early in the movie, the camera hovers on Polaroids of Sam with his wife. His robot companion, Gerty (voiced by Kevin Spacey, Recount), has a "kick me" note on its back, which invites a rich and untold backstory. Sam talks lovingly to the plants he's growing, and he spends ludicrous amounts of time constructing a massive model.

Rockwell conveys the part beautifully, convincing the audience there's real humanity in his character.

It works nicely, especially in moments such as a jarring and poorly written bit of exposition where Rockwell sells a moment that would seem ridiculous if delivered by a less experienced actor with a lesser defined character.

In fact, one of the only weak spots of the film is the occasional lazy bit of writing, which brings the movie's momentum to a grinding halt.

There's the aforementioned moment where the enigmatic tone of the movie becomes concrete and obvious in a snap. There's also a heavy-handed episode late in the film, where an unwieldy line of dialogue serves to shove the film's theme down viewers' throats.

Jones, at times, seems unsure whether he wants his film to be an enjoyable, creepy science fiction romp, or a science fiction romp that tackles some of life's big questions. The latter situation presents problems, as the section of writing with that particular intent isn't up to par with the sharp dialogue and scripting of the rest of the movie.

But the majority of the film is executed wonderfully. It starts off with its beautiful moon surface effects, Sam's personal touches and hints of creepiness, and recovers from a stunted middle to lead towards a pleasing finale.

Rockwell's nuanced performance aside, Gerty shines. Spacey's metallic but weirdly paternal voicing of the tethered robot fits well with its three or four stock emoticon faces. Never has a generic happy face been so creepy.

Elsewhere, Clint Mansell's (The Wrestler) score is equal parts overbearing - when Jones wants a music cue, he wants it, and he wants it loud and gorgeous. It gleefully takes charge when needed, and as joyful as it might seem at first, there's always an ominous undercurrent.

And such is the story of Moon. There's always something underneath the surface, very much literally and figuratively.

Whether it's worth exploring or not, though, is the ultimate question.

jwolper@umd.edu

RATING: 3.5 out of 5 stars