national Arts Festival Banner

Wednesday, October 21, 2020

PROXIMA: EFF: REVIEW

The film’s success lies in our acknowledgment that Sarah’s problems largely disappear when, in the film’s riveting climax, she soars upwards to become a “space person”. (Review by Patrick Compton)

When we think of space movies, it’s usually a male world, full of danger, drama and testosterone in a hi-tech environment crafted by Hollywood. This French film written and directed by Alice Winocour couldn’t be more different, though it’s equally compelling in its own more contemplative way.

Proxima is a feminist movie about an astronaut, Sarah Loreau (powerfully played by Eve Green), who finds herself chosen to join a year-long mission to an international space station. It’s the realisation of a childhood dream but it brings with it a number of problems.

First and foremost she and her eight-year-old daughter, Stella (well played by Zelie Boulant), have to learn to separate – much as Sarah has to learn to separate from Earth. She discovers, in fact, that preparing to leave the planet that has shaped her is almost as difficult as leaving her child.

Winocour has dared to present a film about an astronaut who is also a woman and a mother without flinching. There’s a certain prejudice against female astronauts in this very male world – represented rather obviously by a male astronaut played by Matt Dillon – but even this obstacle is given a certain nuance by the end. Helped by Green’s superb central performance, and the powerful chemistry between her and Boulant, the director successfully brings off her project with careful attention to its emotional complexities.

The result is a film that feels part-documentary (the training scenes are all very convincing) and part-human drama. Its success lies in our acknowledgment that Sarah’s problems largely disappear when, in the film’s riveting climax, she soars upwards to become a “space person”.

* A flare star in the constellation Centaurus that is the nearest star to the sun.) - Patrick Compton

Proxima can be seen from November 12 to 22, 2020, on the European Film Festival’s website. Click on the advert to the right of this article or visit https://www.eurofilmfest.co.za/