Moon: Duncan Jones' Debut Film is Breathtaking, like Trying to Breathe in Space

In "Moon", Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell) is nearing the end of a three-year contract as the sole person at a mining facility on the lunar surface. He goes out in his moon vehicle one day and gets in an accident. He wakes up in the infirmary, recovering slowly. Something is bugging him though, so he heads out in his moon vehicle again - only to find another moon vehicle and, inside it, another Sam Bell.

And then things get weird.

"Moon" is the first feature of Duncan Jones, who, in addition to directing, also has the story credit (kudos galore to writer Nathan Parker for scripting it out). A lot of press has been given to the fact that Jones' father is David Bowie, and indeed I ruminated on this very thought as the film began. However, Jones puts such an individual mark on the film from its first scene that his genetics quickly become irrelevant.

The moon itself is eerie, grey, slow-moving and cold, of course. We know that. To create that on film should be a piece of cake. Don't allow any color on set and slow down the film a little. However, Jones goes steps and steps further, by filming in a way as to create a brutally claustrophobic environment out of the moonbase and surrounding area (including but not limited to below the base). Jones is so successful that, when his protagonist meets his antagonist (did I mention they are both Sam Bell?) in a place designed for one person, it is hard to watch the film and not feel physically constricted. Indeed, on a personal level, I confess, at one point in the film, to wanting to bolt from the theater and get some air.

As for the actors, almost the entirety of the film hinges on the talents Sam Rockwell, which reminds one slightly of "Cast Away" only without the first or third acts - except when the second Sam Rockwell shows up, when, as I suggest above, it get weird. As odd as it is to say, the interplay between Rockwell and himself is fantastic and completely believable; indeed, the cinematography is so precise and human that, if the novelty of an actor playing against himself is never forgotten, it just underscores how professional Rockwell, his body double, Jones and crew were on set.