10 Things Movies Get Wrong About Space

During the opening scene of Gravity (2013) when Lieutenant Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) and Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) are caught in the middle of some high speed incoming space debris in the midst of trying to service the Hubble Telescope, most people in the cinema were simply in awe of the spectacular visual effects on show throughout.

But, if you take a step back from the aesthetic brilliance of the scene, you start to notice a few unrealistic beats.

Most of this involves the behaviour of the astronauts we see trying to survive the situation.

Constantly shouting back to and requesting assistance/permission from Houston throughout the bombardment sticks out like a sore thumb, as it's unclear what Houston would actually be able to do to aid them during this freak incident.

Also, Kowalski repeatedly referring to Stone as 'Dr. Stone' and asking questions about her background earlier in the scene makes you think the pair have only just met, when they would've probably spent months together preparing for the mission in real life.

Gravity's visuals are unquestionably both accurate and stunning, it's just a shame the astronauts in the film are only one of those things.