As a guy who has spent more than a few 4 AMs feeling isolated, a great big part of me appreciated Spaceman and grokked it. Then the part of me that doesn’t really need a giant alien spider therapist to explain the meaning of life, the universe, and everything rejected it.
Spaceman is an unusual Adam Sandler Netflix production and I pat him on the back every time he goes off script. This time he’s a lonely, contemplative astronaut on a solo trek to a giant purple space cloud beyond the orbit of Jupiter (in which he’ll probably find V’ger). His loneliness conjures up a giant alien spider that probably maybe doesn’t exist.
This is Sandler in Serious Guy Zone… a place he usually doesn’t find an audience but I bet he finds personal satisfaction. I enjoy his Hail Mary projects and feel bad each time he doesn’t find an audience and goes back to (metaphorically) sticking a finger up his nose.
What I very much enjoyed about this film was its ethereal, dreamlike, thoughtful tone. It’s trying to be serious, hard sci-fi examination of isolation, desolation, and loneliness. To ask the big thoughtful questions, to examine the human condition, and to wonder what’s out there bigger than ourselves. Well, kind of. In theory.
Too bad it has a giant goddamn therapy spider. It’s a good special effect, creepy talking lips and all, but it seems to exist to over-explain everything. If this space therapist wasn’t in the movie, I’d have loved the challenge of the dreamlike trances the film spins. But every time the giant alien spider therapist butts in with his soothing voice, I just felt bored and condescended to. I was happiest when it was just Sandler being a sad spaceman.
As is, it feels like if they crammed 2010s explanations awkwardly into 2001s metaphysical figure-it-out-yourself-ness. Nobody asked for that… and whoever did could probably find a good DVD commentary and watch 2001 with someone explaining everything.
Not that Spaceman really tries for the big ideas… it’s more focused on Mr. Spaceman’s marital troubles. While I love the FEEL of this movie, I thought its intellectual aspirations were pretty slim. I’m not sure we learned anything transcendent about the human condition…
Spaceman is an admirable try and has genuine moments of ethereal beauty… and I advise no one to watch it while sleepy (trust me). I hope there’s a cut of the film without the spider some day… that’d be a cool trip.
Score: 79