While my experience at Toronto After dark this year might be a bit more truncated than I was hoping, it couldn’t have gotten off to a better start than it did with LOVE on Sunday afternoon.

LOVE is a sci-fi film from first-time director William Eubank. The story is that of astronaut Lee Miller (Gunner Wright), who in 2039 is the sole crew member on a recon mission to the International Space Station. Not long after he arrives he suddenly loses contact with mission control. As days pass into weeks, and moths pass into years, Miller begins the long slow descent of a soul kept in isolation. He visually becomes stressed and unhinged as he finds himself missing what we all feel every day and take for granted; contact, relationships, and love.

LOVE is the sort of sci-fi film that knows its lineage. It evokes feelings of seeing MOON  for the first time, or 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY. In short, it is the sort of philosophical science fiction film that rewards a viewer for letting their mind wander. It poses philosophies on fate, humanity, and control. However, for all of these themes it is more concerned than posing a question than it is in providing answers. Like other films of a similar ilk, it’s difficult to truly talk about or quantify, since the viewer will ultimately get out of it only what they bring in.

That’s not meant to be a slight on the film at all – quite the contrary. In an age where much of what climbs the box office charts is visual storytelling, it’s always a welcome switch to immerse in visual poetry. Likewise, I’m always fascinated by films that rely on one character to do the heavy lifting – in this case Gunner Wright. We get a moment or two of other characters showing up in chapter breaks or on pre-recorded messages, but by and large it is Gunner’s show. In scene after scene on a rather authentic-looking space station, he does a rather good job of conveying his isolation (often shown in a wonderfully shallow depth of field). What’s even more impressive is that he is able to do it all with nothing to play off.

It should be mentioned that all of this comes after a rather striking scene of the American Civil War – which become all the more impressive when one considers the shoestring budget the film was shot on. For a long time, such a choice of opening scene will seem odd, but there is an eventual link. Besides the plot tie-in, it’s an interesting springboard for this sort of story. After all, what we’re considering here is the ultimate in possibilities. How can we ever push ourselves to achieve the greatest of possibilities, when we can’t stop fighting amongst ourselves.

LOVE is an interesting slow-burn, and a worthy addition to the philosophical shelf of science fiction.

6 Replies to “Space Oddity (LOVE Plays Toronto After Dark)”

  1. Oh, this is troubling. I love science fiction and this one really sounds right up my Moon loving alley. However, something inside me has always been frustrated with ambiguous, interpretation films. And judging by your review, this one gears in that direction. More often than not I grow to like them, but very often that first introduction is fueled by aggitation and annoyance.

    1. It’s not a must or anything, so it you were to skip it, you wouldn’t see me go all aghast. Like I say, what you’ll get most out of it is what you bring in.

  2. Heh… I saw the premiere at Fantasia and left with ambiguous feelings towards the movie. For its technical wizardry, of which it has a lot (which in of itself is impressive given that this is a tiny budget film), I never felt the film tied in all its ideas together in an interesting manner. I’m a little surprised at the high praise the film is getting from bloggers who caught it at Toronto After Dark, some praising it for its ingenuity. I actually thought it was a rip off of 2001: A Space Odyssey, and not in the sort of way where one can detect inspiration, but genuine rip off. To each their own I guess.

    1. I can’t really argue with you – I’d sooner argue with people on TREE OF LIFE, and I swore not to do that either. As to why the groupthink left everyone impressed…it’s hard to say. It’s not even like we all have one prevailing taste!

      Could just be that we were primed to dig it after the good things we’d heard come out of Fantasia.

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