The Midnight Sky
netflixNetflix sci-fi drama, The Midnight Sky, brings George Clooney back to the filmic landscape after a four year absence. As well as portraying the very bearded main character, scientist Augustine Lofthouse, Clooney also uses this adaptation of Lily Brooks-Dalton's novel as a further directorial vessel.
The Midnight Sky is a film with two distinct narrative strands. A near apocalyptic event results in Augustine being the lone scientist assigned to look after a base in the Arctic, whilst Felicity Jones leads a gang of familiar acting faces (David Oyelowo, Kyle Chandler, Demian Bichir plus relatively newcomer Tiffany Boone) as the ensemble onboard an exploration spaceship. The ship’s crew are returning to Earth, oblivious to the catastrophe that has occurred in their absence.
The crux of the movie seems to revolve around Augustine getting in touch with the crew in order to alert them of what has happened and this thread is introduced fairly early on in the movie. And then, for some bizarre reason, it isn’t picked up again until roughly the last twenty-five minutes. What is a relatively interesting story is thrown aside for contemplative nothingness – Clooney’s Arctic scenes drag – and mediocre spectacle – a space walk that takes place in the last act is the most drama on offer, but it’s a sequence that pales in comparison to similar sci-fi movies of the past few years. It’s a real shame as Clooney has so much to work with as a director. The setting, the premise and the world presented are all decent audience hooks, but nothing seems to go anywhere.
The casting, also, should have been perfect. Bichir as the quiet, yet friendly introvert Sanchez and Chandler, as Mitchell, flaunting a somewhat subdued version of his signature charm; both actors are seemingly willing to get stuck in, but the material really isn’t there. Instead, every character comes across as an unfulfilled opportunity.
It is hard to pin all the blame on Clooney. He’s fairly likeable here onscreen in the brief characterisation presented with Augustine. His directorial choices, also, are rigidly determined – the moments with Clooney traversing the snowy Arctic landscape are simultaneously beautiful and haunting. Instead, it’s Mark L. Smith’s screenplay that might be the most flawed, offering no real sense of purpose.
The Midnight Sky will undoubtedly remain a blip in Clooney’s career, but it won’t be hard for him to move on quickly and quietly to his next project.