2. The 3D & Visual Effects
If there's anything that sets Gravity up as anything more than a decent film, it's the visual effects put up on display. As stated in the Riddick article where I did the same thing I'm doing now, I commented that I'm not one to rely on visual effects to entertain me. I believe visual effects don't make a film; it's the story, characters, and themes that do. Visual effects are only cosmetic to the cause. But with Gravity that changes. Yes, there is a great story of survival here and characters that feel so real you can almost touch them, but the visual effects are the definitive winner this time around. What you see on-screen is simply some of the most well-constructed and visually appealing CGI you'll ever witness in filmmaking. I'm willing to bet they're better than Avatar's, which I never would have imagined saying in my lifetime. But the way everything is animated and digitally molded is way beyond the complex fabric that is CGI today; this is a whole new level. Alfonso Cuaron stated that the filming process was pre-visualized and pre-lit to capture the exact drama of floating out in space, with relative lighting becoming a factor and how the physics would work with every physical object you screen, even the actors. Add the scary background of space, Earth, and either Bullock or Clooney's face onto their digital avatar, and you'll fear looking back up at the stars at night forevermore. The designs of the space shuttles are also spot-on, revealing detail that the characters won't interact with, but is there because it needs to be. When you watch Gravity, you'll know it's almost purely CGI, but in the end it won't matter; you'll be too sucked in to care or notice for that matter. It's
that damn good. With visual effects, I'm also one to ignore 3D effects. Most of the time I believe 3D is shotty and unnecessary. Most films that arrive in theaters in 3D were converted in post-production just to make that additional dollar, and not because it would be appropriate in the given format. But for Gravity, I was deftly surprised at not just the epic use of 3D, but to learn that the film itself was converted in post-production. All this time I thought it was shot in 3D, for it looked that way in the trailers. And for a film converted into 3D, it stands among the best. Not only do the visual effects pop with colorful and beautiful array, but the 3D effects will have you flinching, twitching, screaming, and gasping for air. That feel of making the film seem like a POV (point of view) for the entire journey in 3D is something that uniquely unravels the code of 3D and replaces it with more unified version of the tech. It may seem like natural 3D effects for the most part, but they feel genuinely realistic, as if we were their experiencing all the up-close action and peril. When the characters are working on repairs and a bolt floats towards us only to be stopped by one of them reaching out and grabbing it, it feels like it's several notches above traditional 3D. And after the credits start rolling, tell yourself "And that was all converted in post-production." It will leave an impact, I guarantee. Although this article forewarned a spoiler warning I won't go into too many specifics with the usage of 3D, for if anyone who's reading this didn't witness the film yet but made it here, you need to witness it yourself on just how revolutionary it is.