Moon (Duncan Jones, 2009)

moonJones’s feature directorial debut can be best described as an intriguing space oddity, which is appropriate given that Jones, a successful British commercial director, is also the son of pop legend David Bowie. The film’s design and aura owe a great deal of debt to both Kubrick’s 2001 and Tarkovsky’s Solaris (the twin titans of thoughtful sci-fi), but its own twist on existential exploration is engaging enough. Sam Rockwell, who is virtually the only human character on screen, pulls off an impressive doppelgänger act that requires him to enact two distinctly different characters who are still fundamentally the same person. (Hollywood Jewel 16, Waco, TX)