“Ad Astra” is a 2019 science fiction drama film written and directed by James Gray. The film stars Brad Pitt in a lead role and features a strong supporting cast including Tommy Lee Jones, Ruth Negga, Donald Sutherland, and Liv Tyler. The film blends space exploration with deep personal introspection, exploring themes of isolation, family, and the human condition.
Plot Summary
Ad Astra is set in the near future, where space travel has advanced and humanity has colonized the moon and Mars. The film follows Roy McBride (Brad Pitt), an astronaut and engineer, as he embarks on a mission to find his missing father, Clifford McBride (Tommy Lee Jones), who disappeared decades earlier during a deep space mission. Clifford was the leader of the Lima Project, a space expedition that aimed to find intelligent life in other galaxies. The mission ultimately failed, and his disappearance has been shrouded in mystery.
Roy, who has lived most of his life in the shadow of his father’s legacy, is called upon by the U.S. military to travel to Neptune, where it is believed that Clifford’s ship is still operating. The mission’s goal is to prevent Clifford from potentially sending dangerous electrical surges that threaten Earth’s survival. Along the way, Roy must confront the psychological impact of growing up with an emotionally distant father and face the realities of space travel, loneliness, and the quest for meaning.
As Roy journeys deeper into space, he undergoes a transformation—reflecting on his own emotional detachment and reconciling his relationships with the past, particularly with his father. The film explores the internal and external challenges of space exploration, blending a grand scale of sci-fi adventure with a personal and emotional quest.
Cast and Characters
- Brad Pitt as Roy McBride: The film’s protagonist, an astronaut with a calm and controlled demeanor, struggling with his own emotional isolation. His journey into space becomes both a literal and metaphorical journey to confront his relationship with his father and his own identity.
- Tommy Lee Jones as Clifford McBride: Roy’s estranged father, a legendary astronaut whose disappearance in space has haunted Roy for most of his life. Clifford represents a figure of authority and ambition, whose extreme pursuit of space exploration has led him to forsake personal connections.
- Ruth Negga as Helen Lantos: A space scientist who aids Roy in his mission to Neptune. She plays a pivotal role in understanding the consequences of the Lima Project and its far-reaching effects.
- Donald Sutherland as Clifford McBride’s former colleague, who offers guidance to Roy and helps him prepare for the dangerous mission ahead.
- Liv Tyler as Eve McBride: Roy’s estranged wife, who serves as an emotional anchor and provides context for Roy’s past relationships, especially his inability to connect with others.
Themes and Tone
Ad Astra combines the grandeur of space exploration with an introspective character study, blending existential questions with themes of isolation, family dynamics, and the pursuit of understanding. Key themes include:
- Isolation and Loneliness: Roy’s journey is not only physical but psychological. As he ventures deeper into space, he must confront his emotional isolation, reflecting the profound loneliness that accompanies both space exploration and the human experience itself.
- Father-Son Relationships: The central narrative of Ad Astra is Roy’s strained relationship with his father, who abandoned his family for the pursuit of scientific discovery. Roy’s quest to find his father becomes a quest for self-understanding and reconciliation.
- The Limits of Human Ambition: The film also delves into the ethical and emotional consequences of human ambition, particularly the cost of pursuing discovery and exploration at the expense of personal relationships and human connection.
- Existentialism: Roy’s journey explores the search for meaning in the vast, indifferent universe. As he grapples with the apparent futility of his mission and the consequences of his father’s actions, the film raises philosophical questions about the purpose of life and human connection.
The tone of the film is contemplative, meditative, and somber, with an atmospheric quality that emphasizes the vastness of space and the emotional depth of the characters’ internal struggles.
Cinematography and Visual Style
The visual style of Ad Astra is one of its most striking features. Cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema creates breathtaking images of space, offering an immersive experience that captures the vast, isolating expanse of the universe. The film combines realistic space imagery with surreal and intimate scenes that blur the line between Roy’s psychological state and the external world.
The film also makes use of a muted color palette, emphasizing a sterile, clinical feel to the environments, from the cold expanse of space to the sterile military facilities and spaceships Roy travels on. This visual style enhances the emotional distance and isolation that the characters experience throughout the film.
Reception
Ad Astra received generally positive reviews, with particular praise for Brad Pitt’s performance, which earned him several nominations and awards. His portrayal of Roy McBride as a man struggling with his emotions while maintaining a stoic exterior was widely regarded as one of the best aspects of the film. Critics also praised the film’s philosophical depth and the way it blended intimate storytelling with grand space adventure.
While many appreciated the film’s introspective approach to space exploration and its thoughtful treatment of complex themes, some felt that the pacing was slow and that the film did not fully deliver on its ambitious premise. Nevertheless, Ad Astra was seen as a visually stunning and thought-provoking film, with many describing it as a cerebral and emotional journey into the human psyche.
Legacy and Impact
Ad Astra stands out for its unique approach to the space genre, focusing more on the internal emotional journey of the protagonist than on traditional action or spectacle. It is a film that explores the psychological cost of space exploration, providing a more human and introspective perspective on the genre.
The film is part of a growing trend of science fiction films that tackle themes of isolation, humanity, and existentialism, joining films like Interstellar and Gravity in reflecting on both the technical and emotional challenges of space travel.
In summary, Ad Astra is a visually stunning, emotionally complex film that combines the grandeur of space exploration with a deep exploration of the human condition. Brad Pitt’s powerful performance and the film’s philosophical themes make it a standout in the sci-fi genre, offering a reflective and introspective look at the search for meaning in an indifferent universe.
