THE ASTRONAUT'S WIFE **1/2 (out of five stars) A review by Jamey Hughton
Starring-Johnny Depp, Charlize Theron, Joe Morton, Clea DuVall, Nick Cassavetes and Donna Murphy Director-Rand Ravich Rated PG
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As of late, certain summer movie releases have been utilizing a common trend. In The Sixth Sense, an unforeseen final twist in the story-line has surprised many moviegoers who were not expecting anything of the sort. And earlier in the season, the terrorist thriller Arlington Road concluded with a devious turn of events that had me staggering out of the theater. The Astronaut's Wife is the latest summer entry to attempt this strategic maneuver, and the first to fall flat in the process.
If writer/director Rand Ravich does one thing effectively, it's building the audience's anticipation for his uneventful script to switch into high gear. As this predictable and untimely surprise finale hits, a painful realization sets in. Ravich has been moderately successful with intriguing us until this point, only to reveal he has nowhere to go. This leaves numerous questions unanswered, many opportunities unfairly squandered, and ultimately an unsatisfied audience exiting the theater while swearing and cursing in disgust. The set-up is interesting enough, but sadly there is no recognizable payoff in this disappointing effort.
The story follows NASA employee Spencer Armacost (Johnny Depp), who is sent into orbit with fellow astronaut Alex Streck (Nick Cassavetes) on a routine space shuttle mission. The assignment seems to be going according to plan until a freak explosion occurs, severing all communications to Earth for roughly a two minute period. Worried wives Jillian Armacost (Charlize Theron) and Natalie Streck (Donna Murphy) are relieved when their husbands arrive back safely. But both are surprised to find bizarre personality changes occurring in the men. When Jillian becomes pregnant, she begins to question if Spencer is the same person he was before the mission. What happened in those two minutes? Use your imagination....
The beautiful Charlize Theron is, consequently, displaying a short blonde look that suspiciously resembles Mia Farrow's in the 1968 thriller Rosemary's Baby. This is only one of the movies that The Astronaut's Wife derives its premise from. There is also a pinch of Species II (of all things) and a dash of The Fly thrown in to boot. The best elements of these films combined could produce an excellent, hair-raising suspense film. Unfortunately, The Astronaut's Wife is hardly a top-notch effort. Theron's character spends basically the entire duration of the film learning facts we already know, thanks to a very informative trailer that spoils most of the thrills. Despite enormous potential in the initial story, there is hardly a twist involved - excepting (of course) the final `surprise'. One would hope that Ravich had something stylish or striking up his sleeve, but it is ultimately disappointing when we realize he has settled on the obvious. His script and direction leave much to be desired.
In the title role, Theron does an admirable job. Her emotional and mental breakdowns in certain scenes are highly convincing, even as she goes through the familiar steps. Johnny Depp, speaking with an unusual drawl that made me cringe, has considerably less success. His delivery is highly flawed, and Depp seems surprisingly miscast in the role. The excellent Joe Morton (Speed, Blues Brothers 2000) provides some thankful assistance as Sherman Reese, a NASA official who fears that something went terribly wrong in space. And Clea DuVall (The Faculty) has some promising moments as Jillian's younger sister.
The Astronaut's Wife was not screened for critics before release, and I'm not exactly sure why. There's certainly early promise, some solid acting, and a steady pace that maintained my complete attention. While Ravich doesn't do anything terribly wrong to upset the balance, he never succeeds in doing much right either. And who can blame the average viewer for feeling cheated, after staying with this promising formula for nearly two hours, only to have it botched by a pathetic ending like this. We deserve more than The Astronaut's Wife delivers.
(C) 1999, Jamey Hughton
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