The Space Between Us is a moving love story set on Mars and Earth [Review]
An out-of-this-world love story.Whereas a lot of space films focus on explosions or aliens, Peter Chelsom’s The Space Between Us is more of a love story.It follows Mars-born teenager Gardner Elliot (Asa Butterfield) as he makes the decision to travels to Earth looking for love and a permanent home.
Sixteen years ago, Nathaniel Shepard (Gary Oldman) set off, with a team of scientists, to Mars. On the way, astronaut Sarah Elliot (Janet Montgomery) realises that she is pregnant – and she dies of complications while giving birth to Gardner on Mars. As a result, Gardner grows up with no company other than the 14 scientists that are on the team on the red planet.
Now, Gardner sets off on a journey to Earth to find the man he believes is his father with the help of a friend he made online, Tulsa (Britt Robertson).
Butterfield does a great job of portraying Gardner, from his falling in love with Tulsa, to his ungainly gait on Earth. The space station on Mars isn’t the bland affair we’re used to seeing – it’s been made more realistic looking with the addition of a sports area and a plant experiment area. The research that’s gone into the medical issues that arise from space travel also deserves a mention – bring tissues for when Gardner’s problems, as a result of his Earthly visit, appear.
Edited by Ginny Wong