FilmSnobReviews

Title: Spaceman
MPA Rating: R
Director: Johan Renck
Starring: Adam Sandler, Carey Mulligan, Paul Dano
Runtime: 1 hr 47 mins

What It Is: In the near future an astronaut from the Czech Republic, Jakub Prochazka (Sandler) is now traveling somewhere around the edge of Jupiter. Meanwhile, at home, his wife Lenka is pregnant. The two have had a rocky bit in their marriage right before Jakub left for this lengthy solo journey that he is currently on. When something rather, peculiar, happens on board it leads to Jakub reassessing his life in an existential crisis happening live as he circumvents  different planet.

What We Think: Man. This had so much potential. The script, penned by Jaroslav Kalfar, and Colby Day, is perhaps the biggest fugazi of this entire project. It has these, grandiose expectations and rather large goals with its plot but it never quite gets out of neutral. Adam Sandler, for his part, is really trying but is ultimately let down with the aforementioned words on the page. Carey Mulligan is, as she always is, so good. There’s an emotional core to this film that is dead set on pulling at the heart strings. It just, it never gets there. Dano’s as the creature Hanus is a bridge too weird for such a delicately balanced story. Tipping it too far into the strange to change the characters story necessity.

Our Grade: C-, There was potential in here that sadly got fumbled, distracted. Renck is a very visual director, one that has been creative and fantastic on the small screen. Here he does kind of bring the aesthetics but there’s a lack of substance here that’s prevalent. A muddled mess that felt a little thrown together. This is one that you can check out for yourself now on Netflix. But like…maybe don’t.