I suppose it doesn’t really matter how or why the Earth is doomed. If civilization ends, the Blame Game is useless; engage in the solution right now or stop pretending you care about the health of the planet and its ability to sustain life. Once the end happens, there’s just not much point in discussing why or how. And that’s where we are in 2049 at the start of the The Midnight Sky, a movie about the last days of life on Earth.
Dr. Augustine Lofthouse (writer/director/grizzled survivalist George Clooney) is going to outlive most humans. It’s quite an irony, really. He has some sort of terminal kidney disease and a shelf-life of less than your average carton of milk, but he’s chosen to stay in the remote arctic research station while everybody else in the station opted to return to family for their personal end game. Augustine has no family.
It’s the introvert in me that is drawn to Augustine and his lifestyle. The cafeteria is empty and spotless. The research station is a pristine ghost town. A wild evening is a bottle of whiskey and a blood transfusion; Augustine has probably done that several times over. Whatever happened to the Earth hasn’t yet reached the caps. But it will. And until then, Augustine will (arguably) live a better life than his peers.
Meanwhile, in space, there’s a ship returning from an exploration of habitable orbs in the galaxy. It might have found one among the moons of Jupiter – a previously hidden lava land called K-23. It was discovered by … Dr. Augustine Lofthouse. Well, gosh, there’s a coincidence. What are the odds that the guy who discovered K-23 and the director’s character have the same name? Astronomical.
Astronaut Sully (Felicity Jones) and the Cap’n (David Oyelowo) are a thing. I dunno how long they’ve been playing “The Captain and Conceal,” but Sully is noticeably pregnant when the film begins. Gee forces! I
wonder if the other astronauts are jealous. Hope not. The spacecraft has a big problem; it can’t seem to find Earth (well, where was the last place you put it?) – which is a shame as the thing contains a set of humans who probably aren’t gonna die by the plague of 2049. And back on planet Doom, Augustine has issues of his own, because suddenly there’s a seven-year-old child where the soda dispenser ought to be.
“Hey, did anybody misplace a child? Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?
The Midnight Sky is alternatively bleak and exciting/dramatic. For an end-of-the-world film, it isn’t nearly as dour as it could be… there’s real charm in the relationship between Augustine and the lostgustine child; there’s less charm in the Cap’n and Sully relationship, but they’re astronauts. What are they supposed to do? Drink Tang and fight Aliens? I see that imdb didn’t like this picture much. Imdb is wrong. The Midnight Sky has a great deal to offer. Honestly, this is very far from a perfect film, but it might just be as good as it gets in 2020, which –admittedly- is still a very sad statement.
It’s the Clooney directorial doctrine
Self-owning a flawed persona on screen
We’ve run out of mirth
They’ve stolen the Earth
Perhaps this is Ocean’s Fourteen
Rated PG-13, 118 Minutes
Director: George Clooney
Writer: Mark L. Smith
Genre: Our screwed future
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: The resigned
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: The remaining hopeful
