If you’re looking to catch one of the best sci-fi thrillers in cinema history, you just have a few days to do so without paying a single cent. Defined by most as “breathtaking” – a feeling its opening sequence certainly evokes – this 2013 epic delivered audiences a once-in-a-lifetime cinematic experience in under 91 minutes of wonder, terror, and tension. While Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar usually gets all the attention as an essential piece of philosophical sci-fi, this Oscar winner deserves to be part of the same conversation.
‘Gravity’ Proves That Sci-Fi Can Be Scarier Than Horror
Gravity, starring Sandra Bullock as astronaut Ryan Stone, is a modern masterpiece blending drama with the best sci-fi thriller conventions. A cinematic journey that felt more real than necessary when putting Bullock’s Ryan Stone in a desperate fight for survival. As audiences, we had been in space before, but no other filmmaker had ever decided to cut the tether that kept us bound to safety.
It all starts in the first minutes of footage, when a spacewalk goes terribly wrong, and Stone is left alone, suspended thousands of miles above Earth. Although her space suit keeps her alive, it can only do so for a limited time. The vastness of space is merciless, there’s no one else left alive, and every second pushes her closer to death.
Space horror is a thing. Most sci-fi horror movies take place in outer space, where there’s usually an otherworldly threat making characters wish they had stayed on the ground. Even though Gravity is far from being a traditional space horror feature, it delivers a terrifying exercise in tension that’s as frightening as a typical alien movie.
Gravity is currently streaming for free on Pluto TV. However, per the official platform’s site, the film will be removed from the catalog soon. Unfortunately, Pluto doesn’t specify when it will leave streaming, but given the way catalog turnover typically occurs on the service, we can safely assume that it will no longer be available starting August 1.
‘Gravity’ Is the Best Sci-Fi Film of the Last 20 Years
During the last two decades, sci-fi fans have witnessed groundbreaking movies that prove the genre is more alive than ever. From franchise works like Dune and Mad Max to original cinematic feats like Interstellar and Pacific Rim, modern cinema has seen the genre evolve beyond the conventions established during the birth of cinema. Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity, however, pushed the boundaries even further, bringing emotion and spectacle together in a movie that sent us far into unknown territory. It was a film unlike anything else audiences had ever witnessed because of its contemplation of space as the most hostile environment imaginable.
Gravity had an impressive box-office performance, especially for a movie not based on an existing franchise. In its theatrical run, it grossed over $723 million against a $130 million production budget, quickly becoming one of the year’s most successful movies. Audiences flocked to theaters to catch a movie that always promised ultimate realism. Nonetheless, Gravity had its detractors, with many saying it was very inaccurate in its depiction of space.
The critical reception was equally positive, with most praising Cuarón’s uncompromising vision. Today, Gravity sits at an impressive 96% on Rotten Tomatoes, the highest-rated movie in Bullock’s career, and one of the highest-rated in Cuarón’s filmography (only A Little Princess sits higher, at 97%). At the Academy Awards the following year, Gravity was one of the ceremony’s darlings. Out of its remarkable 10 nominations, the film won in seven categories, including Best Director, Best Cinematography, and Best Film Editing, among others.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
