--- title: "Gravity: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/gravity/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/gravity" critics_score: 88 critics_reviews: 11 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Gravity (2013): what the critics said Critics' score 88 from 11 reviews: 10 positive, 0 mixed, 1 negative. Most critics greet Gravity with strong enthusiasm, with praise clustering around its effects, Emmanuel Lubezki’s floating camerawork and the sustained tension of its survival story. The long takes and 3D draw repeated praise for making the physical disorientation of space palpable, while sound and silence help establish the astronauts’ isolation. The performances also earn broad approval, particularly Bullock’s combination of physical precision, fear and resilience, which many reviews credit with giving the spectacle human weight. The main division concerns how much the simple story offers beyond immediate danger. Many critics find emotional depth in its treatment of survival and endurance, but Time Out finds the feelings less persuasive than the visuals, and Vulture objects to predictable plotting and strained spirituality. The New Yorker is the sharp dissent, accepting the force of the physical sensations while finding the film boring and short of ideas; most reservations elsewhere stop well short of rejection. ## Little White Lies — David Jenkins Rating 4/5/5. 6 November 2013. Cuarón’s space disaster movie is one of the year’s best, a majestically rendered parable on creation and overcoming depression. It excels visually with breathtaking sequence shots and a focus on reproduction imagery. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/gravity) ## Radio Times — Damon Wise Rating 5/5. The film combines nerve-shredding tension with technical perfection in an intimate sci-fi spectacular. Tremendous special effects and Bullock’s balletic performance complement Cuarón’s breathtaking vision. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-u70ubk/gravity/) ## The Guardian — Mark Kermode Rating ★★★★★. 10 November 2013. The film is a visually mesmerising, crowd-pleasing fairground ride that expands a single sequence from 2001: A Space Odyssey into a full feature of eye-boggling invention. It singles out the level of sheer visual invention, aided by Framestore and Emmanuel Lubezki's cinematography, for praise, while noting its stripped-down narrative and effective 3D experience. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/nov/10/gravity-review) ## Time Out — Tom Huddleston Rating 4/5. 2 September 2013. Gravity is one of the most awe-inspiring achievements in special-effects cinema, with astonishing beauty and originality in its untethered camera work. The emotional content cannot quite compete with the visuals. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/gravity) ## The New Yorker — Richard Brody Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 4 October 2013. The review finds the film viscerally thrilling yet deadly boring, with impressive technology but an absence of ideas or deeper worldview. It excels at conveying the physical sensations of space but remains complacently conventional. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/culture/richard-brody/generic-gravity) ## Empire — Ian Nathan The critic calls it the film of the year, a jaw-dropping technical achievement and existential thriller that puts viewers at the center of extreme jeopardy in space, praising the direction, effects, and performances. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/gravity-review/) ## Film Comment — Scott Foundas The review highlights Gravity's innovative use of silence and sound design to immerse viewers in the astronauts' experience, comparing its spectacle and technical illusion to early cinema pioneers like Méliès. [Read the review](https://www.filmcomment.com/article/review-gravity-alfonso-cuaron/) ## Los Angeles Times — Kenneth Turan 3 October 2013. The critic highlights the film's powerful visual astonishment and immersive 3-D experience that makes viewers feel stranded in space. Strong performances by Bullock and Clooney support Cuarón's bravura long-take sequences. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/moviesnow/la-et-mn-gravity-movie-review-20131004-story.html) ## Screen Daily 28 August 2013. Festival review. Gravity is a genuinely tense and exciting lost-in-space thriller driven by strong performances and spectacular special effects. It sustains its simple concept as an audience pleaser despite some sentimentality. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/gravity/5059677.article) ## Sight and Sound — Jonathan Romney 8 November 2013. The film delivers an extraordinary technical achievement in 3D and immersive space visuals that make the viewer feel untethered. Dramatically it falls short, sacrificing substance for cliffhanger thrills. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/film-week-gravity) ## Slant Magazine 29 September 2013. Cuarón’s film is a benchmark and startling synthesis of outré and popular models through its clean elegant display of action choreography. The critic singles out the ambulatory cinematography, physics trajectories, and existential reckoning of deific presumptions amid silence for praise. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/gravity/) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Todd McCarthy 28 August 2013. Festival review. The film is a thrillingly realized survival story and benchmark in its field thanks to its dazzling technical execution. The critic singles out the astonishing 13-minute opening shot and exemplary 3D work for praise while noting its straightforward dramatic approach. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/gravity-venice-review-615139/) ## The Independent 10 November 2013. The critic praises Gravity as a personal, awe-inspiring survival story and technical marvel in 3D that outshines most blockbusters, highlighting the magical effects, long takes, and strong performances from Bullock and Clooney. [Read the review](https://www.independent.co.uk/independentplus/gravity-review-sandra-bullock-space-epic-makes-other-blockbusters-look-leaden-8931396.html) ## The New York Times — A.O. Scott Rating Critic's Pick. 3 October 2013. The critic praises the film's simple survival story and technical achievements in creating an immersive space experience. Cuarón succeeds in renewing awe for space travel through complex techniques tethered to straightforward narrative. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/04/movies/gravity-stars-sandra-bullock-and-george-clooney.html) ## Variety 28 August 2013. Festival review. The review calls it a white-knuckle space odyssey that restores wonder and terror to the big screen through narrative simplicity and visual complexity. Cuarón's virtuoso direction creates robust thrills and deep human feeling in a nervy blockbuster experiment. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2013/film/global/gravity-review-venice-film-festival-1200589689/) ## Vulture — David Edelstein 29 September 2013. Gravity delivers awe-inspiring visuals and higher math in service of an old-fashioned spiritual theme but remains cornball and predictable in its narrative arc. The critic singles out the long sinuous opening shot and the fusion of faith and science for praise while wincing at some spiritual contortions. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2013/09/movie-review-alfonso-cuarons-gravity.html) ## Den of Geek — Ryan Lambie Rating 5/5. 5 November 2013. The film is praised as a seamless visual conjuring trick with masterful long takes, convincing effects, and strong performances—particularly Bullock's—delivering both technical brilliance and genuine human warmth. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/gravity-review-2/) ## Collider — Matt Goldberg Rating A. 3 October 2013. The critic praises the film's immersive quality and technical achievements in service of a moving human story of survival and endurance. The technical bravura and emotional depth are singled out. [Read the review](https://collider.com/gravity-rmovie-review/) ## The Playlist — The Playlist Staff Rating A. 3 October 2013. Festival review. The review calls Gravity a visceral, tense experience and a technical marvel that is also cleverly written and phenomenally directed. It praises the film as a blockbuster with heart and soul. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/review-alfonso-cuarons-visceral-knuckle-chewing-gravity-starring-sandra-bullock-george-clooney-20131003/) ## /Film — Laremy Legel Rating 9/10. 8 September 2013. Festival review. The critic hails Gravity as a technical marvel and optical treat with a taut script and strong performances, especially from Bullock. Minor logic and timeline issues are noted but do not detract from the overall cinematic achievement. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/527941/tiff-review-gravity-soars-above-the-rest/) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 20 September 2013. The film is a virtuoso technical achievement and a powerfully visceral experience offering a poetic portrait of hope and survival in space. Sandra Bullock carries the film with a balance of fear and resilience while Cuarón's inventive camerawork captures the physics and disorientation of zero gravity. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/gravity-review-thisll-scare-off-any-would-be-astronauts/) ## HeyUGuys — Jo-Ann Titmarsh Rating 4/5. 28 August 2013. Festival review. The critic finds the film a thrilling and moving rollercoaster that will appeal to space enthusiasts and romantics. Bullock and Clooney excel in their roles as the astronauts facing disaster. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/gravity-review/) ## Digital Spy — Simon Reynolds 10 October 2013. Festival review. It commends the technically breathtaking spectacle, unbroken takes, 3D effectiveness, and Bullock's career-best performance in a survival story emphasizing isolation and inner strength. [Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/bfi-london-film-festival/a521344/gravity-review-houston-sandra-bullock-has-a-problem-lff-2013/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/gravity.md