Released on: 10 Jul 2009 • Rated: R • Runtime: 97 min
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Director: Duncan Jones
Writer: Duncan Jones, Nathan Parker
Actors: Sam Rockwell, Kevin Spacey, Dominique McElligott
Plot: Astronaut Sam Bell has a quintessentially personal encounter toward the end of his three-year stint on the Moon, where he, working alongside his computer, GERTY, sends back to Earth parcels of a resource that has helped diminish o…
Box Office Gross: $5,010,163
7.8/10
90%
78
75
3.9
67
Welcome back to Lunchtime Movie Critics! Today, we’re strapping on our metaphorical space boots, grabbing a juice box (because Sam Bell would approve), and setting our sights on Duncan Jones’ sci-fi mind-bender Moon (2009). If you haven’t seen this little indie gem yet, pause this podcast/blog, fire it up, and come back when you’re done. Seriously, spoilers ahead! We’ll wait…
Okay, welcome back! Let’s dive into the weird, lonely, and occasionally heartbreaking world of Sam Rockwell and his many… Sams.
The premise of Moon sounds deceptively simple: Sam Bell (played by Sam Rockwell) is finishing up a three-year contract on the Moon, where he’s been overseeing mining operations for Lunar Industries. The company extracts helium-3, a clean energy source, from the lunar surface. Sam’s only companion on this desolate rock is GERTY, an AI voiced by Kevin Spacey—who is surprisingly chill and not trying to kill anyone (a win for lunar AI!).
With just two weeks left before he returns to Earth and his loving wife and daughter, Sam starts experiencing some… glitches. And by glitches, we mean hallucinations, accidents, and that general, “Is it me or is this lunar base haunted?” vibe. When Sam has a particularly nasty crash outside the base, the plot thickens like bad gravy.
Enter: another Sam Bell. Yup, turns out he’s not as alone as he thought. And this new Sam? Not just some hallucination but an honest-to-goodness, flesh-and-blood clone. Cue the existential crisis—and a lot of bickering. Seriously, these two Sams are like siblings who can’t agree on whose turn it is to do the dishes.
Can we just take a minute to appreciate Sam Rockwell? This guy deserves all the awards for playing not one but TWO versions of Sam Bell. Each Sam has distinct traits: OG Sam (the one who’s been on the Moon for three years) is tired, grizzled, and kind of falling apart (both mentally and physically). New Sam (fresh out of the cloning oven) is sharper, cockier, and not yet weighed down by years of lunar monotony.
Watching Rockwell interact with… himself is fascinating. The scenes where the Sams argue feel like a masterclass in acting. There’s a hilarious moment where they’re literally punching each other out, and you’re left wondering if this counts as self-love or self-loathing. Either way, Rockwell nails it.
Ah, GERTY. A robotic assistant with the voice of Kevin Spacey. You go into this film expecting a HAL-9000 knockoff—all cold, calculating malevolence. But nope! GERTY is actually… nice? Like, suspiciously nice. Instead of saying, “I can’t let you do that, Sam,” he’s handing out advice and emojis like your favorite millennial coworker.
There’s a running joke that GERTY might be the most emotionally supportive character in the film. He’s always checking in on Sam, offering solutions, and generally being the Moon’s best therapist. If it weren’t for the corporate overlords pulling his strings, we’d say he deserves a raise.
The heart of Moon lies in the relationship between the two Sams. At first, they don’t exactly get along. OG Sam is like, “Who is this cocky upstart?” while New Sam is all, “Why is this dude falling apart?” But as they uncover the truth about their situation—that they’re both clones created to work on the Moon until they break down and get replaced—they form an uneasy alliance.
There’s something both tragic and darkly funny about their predicament. Imagine discovering you’re not the original you. Worse, the company you work for has a literal warehouse of you waiting to be activated. The two Sams’ differing reactions—OG Sam’s resignation versus New Sam’s anger—highlight their individuality despite being, well, the same person.
Forget aliens, killer robots, or exploding spaceships. The real antagonist in Moon is capitalism. Lunar Industries doesn’t just exploit lunar resources; it exploits human lives. By using clones instead of hiring actual workers, the company avoids paying salaries, benefits, or training costs. It’s efficient, sure, but also horrifyingly unethical.
The film’s critique of corporate greed is scathing and all too relevant. We’ve all worked for that one company that would probably clone us if it saved them a buck. Watching Sam(s) fight back against Lunar Industries feels cathartic—like sticking it to every soul-sucking corporation out there.
Let’s talk aesthetics. Despite a modest $5 million budget, Moon looks fantastic. The lunar base feels lived-in and functional, with just enough grime to make it believable. The exterior shots of the Moon’s surface are hauntingly beautiful, evoking a sense of isolation that’s both breathtaking and oppressive.
And then there’s Clint Mansell’s score. The music is melancholic and hypnotic, perfectly capturing the film’s themes of loneliness and identity. If you don’t walk away humming the main theme, are you even human?
Moon isn’t just about clones and lunar mining; it’s about identity, humanity, and what it means to be “real.” Are the Sams less human because they’re clones? Does their suffering matter less? The film doesn’t give easy answers, but it forces you to think—and maybe have an existential crisis or two.
So, how does Moon stack up? We’re giving it 9.5 out of 10 lunar rovers. It’s not a perfect film (some of the pacing is slower than a Moon buggy on low battery), but it’s a thought-provoking, emotionally resonant gem that deserves your attention. Plus, Sam Rockwell punching himself is worth the price of admission alone.
Moon is the kind of sci-fi we don’t get enough of these days. It’s smart, emotional, and anchored by a powerhouse performance from Sam Rockwell. If you’ve ever felt overworked, undervalued, or just plain tired of capitalism, this film will speak to you. So, grab some popcorn (and maybe a box of tissues), and give it a watch.
What did you think of Moon? Did you cry? Did you laugh? Did you start questioning your own existence? Let us know, and tune in next time when we tackle another cinematic masterpiece—or trainwreck. Until then, stay curious, movie lovers!
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Movie details, where to watch, and movie poster provided by TMDB, with permission.