Here is a short review of Lucy in the Sky, which opens exclusively at the Santikos Bijou Cinema Bistro October 18.
Lucy in the Sky
Loosely based on a bizarre 2007 incident involving a pair of NASA astronauts, Lucy in the Sky stars Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman (Black Swan) as Lucy Cola, a NASA astronaut who begins an extramarital affair with a fellow space explorer and then turns into a jilted lover when his eyes fix on someone new. In real life, NASA astronaut Lisa Nowak drove from Houston to Orlando to confront the woman her astronaut lover was seeing. During the confrontation at the airport, Nowak attempted to pepper spray the women inside her vehicle and tried to open the car door to get it. Subsequently, Nowak was arrested on a number of charges, including attempted kidnapping. As weird as this encounter was, Lucy in the Sky isn’t interested very much in the melodrama — a decision that actually should be commended. Instead, screenwriter Brian C. Brown (TV’s About a Boy) and debut screenwriter Elliott DiGuiseppi explore the deeper meaning behind the reason Lucy snaps and does something so out of character. It’s an ambitious effort that centers on the idea that Lucy somehow becomes emotionally disconnected to the world after coming home from space for the first time and realizing how trivial life is when compared to the all-encompassing universe. It’s a fascinating notion, but one that Brown, DiGuiseppi and first-time feature director Noah Hawley (TV’s Fargo) aren’t able to sustain in more than a superficial way. 2.5 out of 5 stars (not recommended)
