By Brandon Macchi
Spaceman, released in late February 2024 and directed by Johan Renck, is an interesting step for the esteemed actor Adam Sandler in his vast collection of movies. The story follows a Czech ‘spaceman’ named Jakub Procházka on a mission to gather intel on a mysterious purple cloud of dust that appeared in space, just beyond Jupiter. Jakub struggles with his home relationship along his trip to space, as his pregnant wife intends to leave him while he is away. Jakub goes through mental, emotional, and even physical turmoil as he embarks on the trip.
This film is a dramatic science-fiction offering, quite a departure for Sandler, whose previous movies were mostly comedies. Spaceman experiments with the idea of loneliness and mental health in isolation, alongside family issues and how they affect each member. Seeing the interactions between Jakub and his wife, Lenka (played by Carey Mulligan), makes you feel for the couple, understanding both sides of the soon-to-come divorce. The distance from Earth to Jakub’s ship represents the strain and distance they feel in their relationship in a physical way.
The symbolism throughout the movie is subtle yet clear in its intention, though it can be easy to miss at times. The cinematography helps the overall energy of the movie, with cold colors (white, blue, purple) appearing during calm moments and warm colors (orange, red, brown) appearing during tense situations. Up-close shots help the audience feel the claustrophobia of the ship, with wide shots showing Jakub’s isolation.
Reviewers gave this movie 55/100 on Metacritic and 51% on Rotten Tomatoes, while audiences gave it 59/100 on Metacritic and 65% on Rotten Tomatoes. This movie deserves a higher rating, more towards 8 to 8.5 out of 10, as it’s an incredibly experimental film that may take more than one watch to understand fully. Adam Sandler also does excellent work in a genre he is unfamiliar with and deserves more attention for his performance. I recommend this movie to anyone who enjoys movies such as The Martian (2015) or Interstellar (2014).
