Solaris 2002

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Solaris ★★ ½ 2002 (R)

In the midst of grieving over his dead wife Rheya (McElhone), psychologist Chris Kelvin (Clooney) is summoned to help bring back the survivors of a failed mission aboard a space station orbiting the planet Solaris. Once there, he finds the commander dead and the remaining crewmembers in the grip of some planet-induced paranoia. He also finds his supposedly-dead wife in bed with him the next morning. Soderburgh's moody, claustrophobic, deliberately-paced space oddity offers up existential dread, regret, and search for redemption as the main foes for his characters, rather than some malevolent outside force. This will definitely put off those looking for “Star Wars/Alien” type thrills, but will satisfy those looking for a more cerebral exercise. 99m/C VHS, DVD . US George Clooney, Natascha (Natasha) McElhone, Jeremy Davies, Viola Davis, Ulrich Tukur, Morgan Rusler; D: Steven Soderbergh; W: Steven Soderbergh; C: Steven Soderbergh; M: Cliff Martinez.