There are two camps about "Stranded." It either is a scientifically stupid and poorly acted piece of drivel that draws out an obvious plot interminably, or it is a unique low-rent take on something quite interesting with moments of sheer delight.
I am in the latter camp.
Sure, the science makes no sense. Anyone with the first clue about space can spot the numerous errors. These include instant communication from Mars to Earth and so forth. Go pat yourself on the head for having the astounding perception to spot that sort of thing and whine about it. If that sort of thing bugs you, well, it's a shame you can't just learn to suspend your belief and go with the concept rather than the details. Allow yourself to be entertained and maybe you will be someday.
Rather than dwell on the negative, though, I focus on the attitude and the story - and I liked both. The attitude is pure Vincent Gallo. If you don't know who he is, I highly recommend you go out and find "Buffalo '66" somewhere. It is one of the most original films you will ever see with all sorts of inside jokes (most hilariously about the placekicker who cost the Buffalo Bills a key playoff win, but that's another story). "Buffalo '66" is one of those films that sticks with you as you wonder, "did he really do that?"
I am not some kind of Vincent Gallo groupie. He is an acquired taste. Acerbic, downright annoying, and resplendent in his indifferent and almost vulgar acting style, Gallo is perfect for the role of the "smart guy" know-it-all usually portrayed in sci-fi pablum as aliens (Vulcans, androids, whatever). Here, Gallo goes stays in his standard lane to pile on the dislikability intentionally like shoveling cement into a post hole. Most unexpectedly, it works. Gallo easily the strongest figure in the film precisely because he is unpredictable, direct, and operates unexpectedly for his character with utterly base motives. He is the axis around which the plot turns, the car crash on the roadside everyone stops to look at, and saves this film from ossifying from predictability and tedium..
Everybody else pretty much descends into one stereotype or another. There's the guy who thinks he can fix any problem if he just tries hard enough, the self-doubting replacement commander, the easygoing guy who you know isn't going to make it but will be everyone's friend until he goes, and so forth. The writing for the most part is pedestrian and obvious and you can spot the ending a light year away.
However, you can enjoy this film, you just need to be patient (meaning, have nothing better to do). There are moments that are transcendent in their uniqueness for a complete film. A guy who knows he's got no time left starts randomly talking about John Carter and Barzoom. Another guy, circling in the command module high above like a Michael Collins and perfectly safe while knowing the crew below has no hope, goes abruptly, "I've got to head back to Earth in two days. Well, gotta go, cya!" There's wild humor in this stuff if you read enough into it and what this says about how humans viscerally react in such situations without the phony macho posing.
But the best moment of the film belongs to Maria de Medeiros, who you might recognize from "Pulp Fiction." After Gallo's character makes one of the worst come-ons in any film anywhere but is oh-so-right for Gallo, she turns him down with some of the most pointed jabs of all time. Her suggestions of how they might portray him with a statue (undoubtedly portraying him doing what she recommends he do to enjoy himself for his final hours) is hilarious and devastating at the same time. We've been waiting the entire time for someone to finally tell Gallo's character off and it is a moment of pure catharsis. That scene would be totally impossible in any Hollywood cookie-cutter sci-fi film where everything has to be oh-so-serious and for that reason alone is so enjoyable to watch.
Yes, "Stranded" has all sorts of amateurish moments. The opening credits sequence is arduous to sit through, and if if you made it through that, you deserve a medal. The next half hour isn't much better. But if you go in just suspending your belief and look for the humor and fun in the (of course, Mr. Or Ms. Smart Guy Scientific Genius) completely impossible complications and payoff, you may actually find yourself entertained. And that goes double if you, like me, are unbearably tired of the same old Hollywood factory films that all follow the same tired conventions and have the same tired "complications" and tired plot twists and oh-so-clever tired dialog. Go watch something with Kristen Stewart or George Clooney or Matt Damon instead if that is what it takes to turn you on.
"Stranded" may have a lot of problems, but it has original moments that are pure gold. I liked it. I bet you will relish and remember some of its delicious moments long after you forget the longwinded and mundane bits.
I am in the latter camp.
Sure, the science makes no sense. Anyone with the first clue about space can spot the numerous errors. These include instant communication from Mars to Earth and so forth. Go pat yourself on the head for having the astounding perception to spot that sort of thing and whine about it. If that sort of thing bugs you, well, it's a shame you can't just learn to suspend your belief and go with the concept rather than the details. Allow yourself to be entertained and maybe you will be someday.
Rather than dwell on the negative, though, I focus on the attitude and the story - and I liked both. The attitude is pure Vincent Gallo. If you don't know who he is, I highly recommend you go out and find "Buffalo '66" somewhere. It is one of the most original films you will ever see with all sorts of inside jokes (most hilariously about the placekicker who cost the Buffalo Bills a key playoff win, but that's another story). "Buffalo '66" is one of those films that sticks with you as you wonder, "did he really do that?"
I am not some kind of Vincent Gallo groupie. He is an acquired taste. Acerbic, downright annoying, and resplendent in his indifferent and almost vulgar acting style, Gallo is perfect for the role of the "smart guy" know-it-all usually portrayed in sci-fi pablum as aliens (Vulcans, androids, whatever). Here, Gallo goes stays in his standard lane to pile on the dislikability intentionally like shoveling cement into a post hole. Most unexpectedly, it works. Gallo easily the strongest figure in the film precisely because he is unpredictable, direct, and operates unexpectedly for his character with utterly base motives. He is the axis around which the plot turns, the car crash on the roadside everyone stops to look at, and saves this film from ossifying from predictability and tedium..
Everybody else pretty much descends into one stereotype or another. There's the guy who thinks he can fix any problem if he just tries hard enough, the self-doubting replacement commander, the easygoing guy who you know isn't going to make it but will be everyone's friend until he goes, and so forth. The writing for the most part is pedestrian and obvious and you can spot the ending a light year away.
However, you can enjoy this film, you just need to be patient (meaning, have nothing better to do). There are moments that are transcendent in their uniqueness for a complete film. A guy who knows he's got no time left starts randomly talking about John Carter and Barzoom. Another guy, circling in the command module high above like a Michael Collins and perfectly safe while knowing the crew below has no hope, goes abruptly, "I've got to head back to Earth in two days. Well, gotta go, cya!" There's wild humor in this stuff if you read enough into it and what this says about how humans viscerally react in such situations without the phony macho posing.
But the best moment of the film belongs to Maria de Medeiros, who you might recognize from "Pulp Fiction." After Gallo's character makes one of the worst come-ons in any film anywhere but is oh-so-right for Gallo, she turns him down with some of the most pointed jabs of all time. Her suggestions of how they might portray him with a statue (undoubtedly portraying him doing what she recommends he do to enjoy himself for his final hours) is hilarious and devastating at the same time. We've been waiting the entire time for someone to finally tell Gallo's character off and it is a moment of pure catharsis. That scene would be totally impossible in any Hollywood cookie-cutter sci-fi film where everything has to be oh-so-serious and for that reason alone is so enjoyable to watch.
Yes, "Stranded" has all sorts of amateurish moments. The opening credits sequence is arduous to sit through, and if if you made it through that, you deserve a medal. The next half hour isn't much better. But if you go in just suspending your belief and look for the humor and fun in the (of course, Mr. Or Ms. Smart Guy Scientific Genius) completely impossible complications and payoff, you may actually find yourself entertained. And that goes double if you, like me, are unbearably tired of the same old Hollywood factory films that all follow the same tired conventions and have the same tired "complications" and tired plot twists and oh-so-clever tired dialog. Go watch something with Kristen Stewart or George Clooney or Matt Damon instead if that is what it takes to turn you on.
"Stranded" may have a lot of problems, but it has original moments that are pure gold. I liked it. I bet you will relish and remember some of its delicious moments long after you forget the longwinded and mundane bits.