The Space Between Us Review: Insulting As A Sci-fi And A Romance

The Space Between Us is a romantic science fiction film that is nearly as insulting as a sci-fi as it is insulting as a romance.

societyreviews

February 7, 2017

2 minutes

Asa Butterfield, Britt Robertson, Carla Gugino, Gary Oldman, Romance, Sci-Fi

The Space Between Us is a story about a scientist (Gary Oldman) who spends trillions of taxpayer dollars to send a colony of people to Mars, send his son back down from Mars (spoiler alert), and then uses various expensive resources to run around the country looking for him…and the kid isn’t even Matt Damon. Asa Butterfield stars as Gardner, a teenager who was born on Mars because his mother didn’t take a pregnancy test before going to space.

When the plot kills her after delivering a healthy baby boy, Gardner is left to be raised by scientists which makes him super smart in creating technology but super dumb when it comes to everything else like understanding how to talk to people despite being raised by scientists his whole life. After getting on a ship and flying back to Earth, it is discovered that due to the gravity differences on the planet, his heart can’t withstand earth’s gravity and begins to kill him. Unfortunately, Gardner runs around the Southwest United States before anyone can tell him. A poorly written film as they try to create emotion by forcing it. The love story doesn’t feel genuine at all. The couple meets for the first time and in the span of the two days, they are madly in love with each other…sure. The setup goes to illustrate how pathetic teen romance movies are these days by selling an idea of love that isn’t realistic. The veteran actors, Carla Gugino and Gary Oldman are only in the film to run on camera while always being 10 minutes behind the two kids that steal cars and a ridiculous amount of cash. While I’m sure they commit multiple felonies throughout the film, they don’t bother to address it. The only thing that stands out in this film is NASA having more money and resources than Matt Damon had in The Martian and the primary plot device is emotional manipulation. The solution to Gardner’s medical problems is absurd and even the big twist at the end you feel absolutely nothing for because you don’t believe it for a second. The Space Between Us is a romantic science fiction film that is nearly as insulting as a sci-fi as it is insulting as a romance.

1/5

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7 responses to “The Space Between Us Review: Insulting As A Sci-fi And A Romance”

JO_Wass

February 8, 2017 at 8:09 am

I refuse to see this film if Matt Damon isn’t in it.

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Amari Sali

February 8, 2017 at 8:38 am

With this being delayed at least 3 times, much less this being a teen movie featuring sci-fi elements, I immediately took it off any sort of high pedestal. Which I think has to be done because if you want to put it next to Matt Damon movies (which I don’t watch because I love myself), that have high production values, you’ll be asking “What the *beep* is this?”

To me, this movie was in a different lane and while the romance was rushed as usual, since adults think kids are mad shallow and fall in love at the blink of an eye, it got cute at times. I didn’t fully understand how and why Tulsa knew how to be a career criminal, but I guess we are supposed to assume anyone who has been in multiple foster homes knows how to pick locks and hot wire cars. Since, apparently, that is what the system teaches them.

As for his awkwardness, I partly understood it only because most of them scientist probably didn’t give two flicks of manure about him. They didn’t sign up to baby sit or teach. So outside of Carla’s character, most people probably just looked at him, wondering why he is in their lab, and that’s about it.

I will admit though, this boy has some type of futuristic internet that allows him to chat with some girl in real time, so why is he freaked out about a horse? He is obsessed with Earth, and seemingly doesn’t have your normal 8 to 3:30 or 2:45 school schedule, yet he isn’t an encyclopedia? It’s like, how can he be so smart to reprogram and hack a computer but can’t brush up on the different animals on Earth or social etiquette? Especially when he knows he will be traveling there.

Like, if it was me, granted, seeing someone my own age and hanging out would be a priority, but so would be a zoo since there is nothing but plant life and scientist on Mars.

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1. societyreviews
  
  February 8, 2017 at 10:36 am
  
  Didn’t realize there was so many delays for this but it makes since now. I guess since they aimed this at a younger audience they didn’t expect them to pick up on minor details that the majority of viewers would go “Wait…what?” at which is kinda insulting to the younger generation that they think they are that stupid. I mean for a girl who doesn’t trust anybody, it would be weird that she suddenly fell in love with this weirdo in about 48 hours. He also states he was raised by scientists so it’s not like they treated him like a football in the closet. Now that you mention it, how did that girl afford a super expensive futuristic laptop as a system baby? I mean, her foster sprays crops for 190 bucks….a WiFi laptop to Mars would cost an annual budget
  
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  1. Amari Sali
    
    February 8, 2017 at 10:42 am
    
    Which is another issue of this film. It has you piece a lot of things together and when you do, things don’t make sense. Say the school provided that fancy laptop? Well, granted the movie was in the 2030s I think, but why are they in a basic ass classroom with these high grade laptops? Why are there still crop dusters if there are Mars colonies and things of that nature?
    
    It’s like, as you said, minor details aren’t thought about to the point you have to question wonder if anyone but the writer really read the whole script.
    
    As for Tulsa being so trusting, being that I read and watch a lot of romance genre stuff, I think it was her wanting to trust him which was the doorway for that. However, ain’t no way in hell I would have stuck with someone I just met who seems like he got some kind of organization after him. Especially if all I got is some street smarts and no money.
    
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Jay

February 10, 2017 at 2:03 pm

Crap, that sounds unbearable.

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1. societyreviews
  
  February 10, 2017 at 2:39 pm
  
  At least it wasn’t 143 minutes…
  
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Spider-Man: Homecoming Review – societyreviews

July 7, 2017 at 10:45 pm

[…] it so they went with their second choice of Tom Holland instead while Butterfield was stuck doing The Space Between Us thus ending his short career. Then you have Robert Downey Jr. who is still spending all the money […]

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