Review of 'Spaceman'

Astronaut Jakub Procharzka (Adam Sandler) is months into a solo space mission to investigate “Chopra”, a mysterious cloud of dust and particles that appeared four years earlier just beyond Jupiter. Jakub has trouble sleeping which is not helped by a malfunctioning toilet that makes noises throughout the night. He keeps in contact with his wife Lenka (Carey Mulligan) but when she sends him a break-up message it is intercepted by Commissioner Tuma (Isabella Rossellini), Jakub's commanding officer, to avoid any more psychological stress for Jakub. After days without hearing from his wife Jakub discovers a large telepathic spider-like creature (voiced by Paul Dano) in his spacecraft that assures Jakub he means no harm. The creature, named “Hanus” by Jakub, assures him that he is there to help, showing Jakub scenes from his early life that helps to explain his emotional detachment from his wife. The two spend their time talking things through as they get closer and closer to “Chopra” but Hanus has a secret he is keeping from Jakub…

An interesting and, yes, quirky film set in the claustrophobic confines of a spaceship in deep space manned by Adam Sandler who this time is playing strongly against type (there is little humour in this film) as a man with some big emotional baggage whose psychiatrist is, of course, an alien spider. Sandler does a great job playing the troubled Jakub with an emotional intensity and obvious commitment to the role that we very quickly accept that he is talking to a giant spider. We are not always given answers on a plate but rather left to put the pieces together which draws the viewer in but at the same time it feels somewhat emotionally flat though with a satisfying denouement.

The special effects are quite convincing with thankfully a focus on believability (ok, perhaps a large talking spider is a bit much…but it is quite convincing anyway). As Jakub is a Czech astronaut everything the characters are all Czech (though talk in English) which does not entirely strike me as a big space-faring country so this slightly jars but otherwise the film seems to capture the gritty reality of humanity in space.

An interesting film that I found took a while to get into with characters that are not altogether likeable though I still kept watching to see what would happen…

Rating: “It is OK but I have some issues”

Review Date: 2024-10-20

Directed by: Johan Renck

Studio: Free Association

Year: 2024

Length: 107 minutes

Genre: Science Fiction

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11097384/