About the film (courtesy of 20th Century Fox):
A paranoid thriller in space that follows Roy McBride (Brad Pitt) on a mission across an unforgiving solar system to uncover the truth about his missing father and his doomed expedition that now, 30 years later, threatens the universe.

Ad Astra is another of those movies where expectations can make a world of difference. And in the case of Brad Pitt’s latest vehicle, this may be more relevant than ever. Fresh off of the heels of Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, another of Quentin Tarantino’s well-received feature films, which also starred Pitt in a co-starring capacity, also had a huge air of mystery about it prior to being released. It would seem that director James Gray is banking on a similar clandestine approach in the hopes of piquing potential ticket buyers’ interest with the promise of the unknown. Can this similar approach payoff for the second time in less than two months?

The thing that Ad Astra has going for it, other than the obvious marketability of its main star, Brad Pitt, is that the marketing money that 20th Century Fox has poured into this project happens to be giving the sci-fi-ish drama an appeal that looks to capture the attention of the curious. Not much is revealed in its many, many clips seen on television and online but they’ve included just enough different footage to hook just about everyone.

Now here’s where things get a bit tricky. Know this, Ad Astra is not an space adventure that will unlock wondrous puzzles of life. Even though most of the plot takes place off-planet, it remains a very grounded, practical and more times than not, tediously methodical march towards its eventual conclusion. Full alertness and the patience of a saint are required to make it through its entirety without drifting off for a minute or two.

The visuals of the epic cinematography are a treat for the eyes, as is the score for the ears. Seriously, when the rather dry acting isn’t taking place, Ad Astra feels like it will engulf viewers with its extrasensory delights. Back to a crash course in reality. Pitt’s acting, even though its by design due to his character’s solemn demeanor, is grueling throughout. Yes, his Roy McBride is supposed to be this way but Pitt may have given too convincing of a performance to keep audiences engaged and excited. Liv Tyler, Ruth Negga, Donald Sutherland and Tommy Lee Jones share the stage with Pitt, yet no one is able to break out of their structured shells to standout.

In some ways, the plot of Ad Astra feels watered down. It’s like James Gray had a great initial idea but became overwhelmed and distracted along the way. For a movie that’s only two hours long, it feels as though time slowed exponentially upon reaching the space portion of the story. In several ways, this experience feels similar to that of last year’s First Man (2018) where all of the components are present but its entirety doesn’t come together the way that you would hope an entertaining movie would. It is for this reason that I can say that I found it slightly disappointing and annoyingly slow, not to mention the absence of fluidity in its storytelling. See it on the big screen if you’re all about the presentation aspect. If you’re hoping for a solidly entertaining feature, I’d hold off and catch it at a matinee. In theaters now.