The Space Between Us
By Gopitha Kiribandara
A teen science fiction romance that falls a few paces short of being a competent project, The Space Between Us is directed by Peter Chelsom and stars Gary Oldman, Asa Butterfield, Britt Robertson, and Carla Gugino.
The narrative follows Gardner Eliot (Butterfield), a human boy born in Mars. Set in the ‘near’ future, Nathaniel Shepherd (Oldman), the CEO of Genesis, launches the first ever mission to colonise Mars. However his lead astronaut Sarah Elliot (Janet Montgomery) discovers that she is pregnant and gives birth shortly after landing. Sarah suffers from complications surrounding the birth and dies soon afterwards; the identity of the father of the child remains shrouded in mystery. Named Gardener, the child is raised on Mars, his existence kept a secret by Nathaniel who wishes to avoid a PR disaster for his company. 16 years later, the boy hacks into the ship’s storage and gains access to his mother’s past. Eager to find his roots, Gardner sets up online contact with Tulsa (Robertson) from Colorado. Circumstances lead to his arrival on earth, and we see Gardner attempting to establish his identity as he tries to pick up the broken shards of his past.
The Space Between Us has a promising storyline that is hampered by a lack of creativity; masquerading as a sci fi tale, this movie is really a coming of age tale of an outcast teenage boy. The film, which celebrates a dreamy existence, misses many opportunities to hit the mark; for instance while Gardner wishes to enjoy and experience life on earth, not much of the landmarks or the well preserved the countryside. In most sci-fi movies, the earth is presented as polluted, but the act of colonisation in The Space Between Us comes as an experiment rather than a necessary option. However, the writers fail to capitalise strongly on Gardner’s emotions and his confusion at being on earth. The movie is more of a teen romance, as it centres instead on his need for love and acceptance. The plot twists are predictable (Gardener’s escape, the revelation of the identify of his father etc) and jaded. The characters in the film tend to be stereotyped and as a result give little room for the talented cast to expand their creativity. Oldman is effective in his portrayal of a typical CEO and Butterfield continues to hone his already considerable acting skills with a nuanced performance as Gardner. However, the film, as a whole, suffers from a lack of creative originality.
