There are many reasons why James Gray was a reliable filmmaker, though he never achieved the commercial success of American filmmakers like Quentin Tarandino or Paul Thomas Anderson, nor was he hailed as a genius by critics. Since his debut film, Little Odessa, came out in 1994, Gray has produced five feature films, four of which went to the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival — but he never won.
"Two Lovers" may have been Gray's masterpiece, but the film was swallowed up by the off-screen performance controversy of the star Joaquin Phoenix when it was released in theaters, when he was busy announcing that he was retiring from the film industry and turning into a rap music career — this time the performance art was included in Kathy Affleck's 2010 satirical documentary "I'm Still Here.". Gray's long-time project, Lost Z, once featured stars like Brad Pitt, was later converted to Nidikt Cumberbatch, and eventually Amazon Studios released the film, which was snubbed at the U.S. and Canadian theaters, earning just $8.6 million and $10.7 million at the overseas box office.
Gray is a serious, thoughtful filmmaker who deserves a more successful career and a better reputation in the eyes of movie fans. Unfortunately, I don't know why, maybe he has lost control of many factors, maybe it is because he explores subcultural groups too much, or maybe he has a deep display and expression of different male groups, Gray is like a mystery in people's eyes. He's a director with an absolutely strong personality, and he's constantly making movies, but the average fan can't recognize him at a glance or find him in a long line.
Theatrical version of Star Quest is previewed
"Star Quest" is his seventh film, and starring one of the world's most famous and biggest movie stars, and his "back fortune" may change, or it may continue. "Interstellar Exploration" is a film about the darkness caused by genetic susceptibility, the devastating blow that encroaches on everything, and the story of how we are enslaved by the walls of our hearts.
<b>"Interstellar Exploration" is definitely a film that deviates from popularity and tradition. Concepts and outcomes are mature, and Gray's film is a meditation on father and son, highlighting the pervasive problem of emotional alienation in male relationships—all grafted into a story of outer space exploration, which also has an extended allegory and interpretation of the subject. </b>
Pitt plays Roy McBridge, a mentally wandering astronaut who follows a series of tragic events in which he is assigned by his superiors on a deep-space exploration mission in search of his long-estranged father, Clifford (Tommy Lee Jones). His father was a famous astronaut, and it was thought for a long time that he had died. Roy's space travels have crossed Neptune, where he is tasked with investigating a strange explosion of solar system energy that could affect the survival of Earth.
Space scenes from Star Quest
Gray is not interested in cgi technology, nor is he interested in attracting audiences with brilliant visual presentations in this highly technologically advanced era. <b>The use of special effects in this film is not so much to present a fantasy futuristic world as to express the emotional dislocation of Roy's experience in the cold outer space. </b>Working with cinematographer Hoyt van Hotma, he crafted a beautiful, unpretentious visual palette with shimmering light that serves and reinforces the film's delicate rhythms. <b>In this thoughtful feature film, there are two unexpected (and at the same time very successful) action scenes, but the overall tone and rhythm of Star Quest is cold and melancholy. </b>
Gray's films are reminiscent of Flying into Space 2002, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Advent, and Interstellar, and Roy's personal journey also has the texture of Heart of Darkness. The film also has some shortcomings – not big problems that go deep into the bone marrow, but some mistakes that are not shocking. <b>Scenes of Roy's abandoned earth family life, including that of his wife Eve (Liv Taylor), are highly perfunctory, but these scenes have little effect on the film's emotional expression. And then there's Roy's very tiring-sounding narration, perhaps to make the film better serve the mainstream, or the mass audience. But in this case, less is more. </b>
Stills from Interstellar Quest
The core charm of the film comes from The powerful ascetic performance of Brad Pitt, who is very good at showing pain. Fans have watched him perform this in many scenes, from Tower of Babel to Rage, to Death of a Sharpshooter, and most recently, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. In "Interstellar Exploration", Pete's performance of this emotion is more lasting, an emotional reflection from the inside out, <b>and it can powerfully express a lifetime of regret without words. </b>Gray and Pete have a deep friendship, are old friends, and he seems to have the ability to open up the most pristine and pure side of the 55-year-old male star.
The creator of "Interstellar Exploration" appeared at the Venice Film Festival
Star Quest is a thoughtful, challenging, detail-oriented film about 21st-century men— men who sometimes look up to their fathers, and the limitations and hurts they do. <b>Gray's film career has reached this day, and he has never been a filmmaker who serves the mainstream public. Whether Star Quest resonates with commercial moviegoers who spend money in theaters seeking entertainment and escapism, I don't think Gray cares about it. </b>
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