There is no definite way we can deal with pain and loss. There are several ways humans process grief. One of the most common ways is through denial. For some unknown reason, most of us were taught to be tougher than our grief and focus on the positives. But what if the route to finding positivity is creating a fantasy world and living in a bubble? Well, society would then call us names. So, a person who is grieving would either have to ignore his or her family’s concept of processing grief or would have to live ignoring society. In between all these, there is a virtual world—a world that shows us endless possibilities and makes us believe that everything is possible. However, by believing what we virtually see, we lose touch with reality. So, the world today is a gigantic asylum where everyone survives by creating their own reality. So, it is all bad and hopeless? Well, there is one thing that people still believe in having true healing power—something that gives us a true purpose. And this wonderful thing is a four-letter word called “love.”
Director Kyra Sedgwick, in her film Space Oddity, basically expressed everything we were discussing so far. The film is a beautiful rendition of what life can be with a purpose and how grief engulfs people so much that they turn a blind eye toward reality. The film will be any regular rom-com but with a message on how to process grief. The simplicity of the film is bound to make you smile. And, it is fair to say, another female director painted male characters so amazingly that you might just thank her for making the film.
Spoilers Ahead
Escape Route
The protagonist, Alex McAllister (Kyle Allen), is preparing to bid Earth farewell and be one of the first few settlers on Mars. He was chosen by a private organization to be a part of their Mars colonization program. He is self-training, jogging, running, and exercising to stay fit so that the day the organization calls, he gets to fly away from the planet. It is no news that his family and people from his town think that he is crazy. They secretly laugh at him, but Alex is unbothered. Alex’s family has a farm and is the prime flower distributor in the town.
Alex’s family was hit by a tragedy that seemed to engulf them all. However, no one in the family talks about it or shares how they are coping. Alex’s father, Jeff McAllister (Kevin Bacon), was a man who used to spend most of his time at the farm looking after the flowers. His helping hand is a funny yet knowledgeable guy, Dimitri (Simon Helberg). Jeff is uptight and doesn’t pay much attention to anything other than his flowers. Dimitri tries to maintain a balance between father and son. On the one hand, he helps Alex grow crops in an impossible situation (a drought-like situation), and on the other, he helps Jeff make the town beautiful with flowers and ferns.
Alex’s mother mostly stays quiet and encourages her son in everything he decides to do. The happiness of her son mattered to her so much that she deliberately overlooked the fact that he was on a suicide mission. Although the success rate of the mission was negligible, the mother didn’t care to see that her son was willing to leave Earth forever and go to an inhabitable place. This was how the mother thought she would keep her son close and happy.
Alex’s sister, Liz (Madaline Brewer), was a workaholic. She moved to the big city to work as a PR person for famous people. Her way of dealing with the tragedy was by escaping from the place and the people. However, she was the first to recognize that Alex wanted to escape to Mars to hide the pain that he had in his heart.
This practically shows how a perfect family is paralyzed by grief.
Fresh Bloomed Daisy
A new girl came to the town where our protagonist lives. The girl’s uncle owns an insurance firm, and the girl, Daisy, begins helping him. Coincidentally, Daisy’s first job was with Alex. As Daisy began to learn about her client, she was amazed by the beautiful and smart person Alex was. Alex was passionate about space, great with children, and a hard-working person. He was also a smart person who knew how to grow plants in the harshest of times. Daisy was drawn towards Alex, and the feeling was mutual. However, Alex was resistant. He confessed the tragedy of his family to her. His elder brother died in a fatal car accident, and he saved his life. Both brothers were passionate about space and wanted to work with NASA. Daisy understood that leaving the Earth and settling on Mars was Alex’s great plan to escape his misery. Daisy told her not to go forward with the plan after she met another guy who was selected for the program and was Alex’s friend.
The friend, Mike, had three beautiful children and a wife, and he wanted to leave the mundane life and responsibilities. He has no passion for Mars; he is just a regular man who wants to escape from his reality. Daisy confessed her dark secret to Alex. Daisy was a swimmer but wasn’t very good at it. So, in one match, she took a supplement and got caught. Alex used Daisy’s story to tell her that he shouldn’t be taking advice from a cheater about life. Daisy was hurt and infuriated, but she told Alex that she was trying to be better by not running away from her reality.
‘Space Oddity’ Ending
Ever since the news of Alex being selected for the Mars program broke, local media channels were after him to get an interview. Liz acted as her brother’s peer to save the farm and the people they worked with. On one occasion, Alex interviewed without consulting his sister, and the result was disastrous. The entire family was in shock, and for the first time, they had a real conversation about Tom, their deceased member. However, as the family finally began to see that they had all been silently grieving and mourning the death of Tom, they lost touch with each other. They understood that they ignored who was in their lives and their well-being.
Finally, as the family accepted how they felt without fighting the pain, they seemed to grasp reality for what it was. Alex had given up his plans to move to Mars and was ready for a proper interview. Liz took over the farm after leaving her PR job. In the end, Alex apologized to Daisy and proposed to her. In the end, the broken family was reunited, and they all finally moved on from a disaster that had been defining their lives for so long.
The film is a simple portrayal, yet it has powerful insights into grief and several psychological problems that people face. It also says that life isn’t always fair, but it is not hopeless. Somewhere towards the end, you might just feel how right Professor Dumbledore of Harry Potter was. He said, “Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light,” and the McAllister family surely turned their lights on.