Spaceman (2024), directed by Johan Renck, stars Adam Sandler, Carey Mulligan, Paul Dano, Kunal Nayyar, and Isabella Rossellini. This is Renck’s first feature-length film after his breakout work on HBO’s Chernobyl (2019). It follows an astronaut, Jakub (Sandler), 6 months into a solo space mission. Dealing with severe loneliness and a deteriorating mental state, Jakub struggles with the memory of leaving behind his pregnant wife, Lenka (Mulligan). Much to his surprise, Jakub soon discovers a spider-like alien, Hanus (Dano), who has stowed away on his ship. However, contradictory to the alien’s intimidating appearance, it presents itself as another explorer whose home planet has been decimated. As the two become comfortable with one another, they begin to discuss each other’s species and how they can be beneficial to one another. Hanus reveals that he has the ability to join others in their memories/thoughts. He begins to help Jakob come to terms with his relationship with his estranged wife as well as his father. As the two travel closer to what is supposedly the origin of the universe, they soon realize that neither of them can handle it alone. 

Sandler gives another top-notch performance here, solidifying him as one of the more consistent dramatic actors working today. His range is impeccable, that’s never been in question, but Spaceman proves that films like Uncut Gems (2019) and Hustle (2022) weren’t just flukes or cases of perfect casting. With this film, I feel confident that Sandler can play just about every role he sets his mind to. I believed walking in that Sandler could never play a convincing astronaut, but I was so, so wrong. The script is smart in the sense that we immediately endear ourselves to the character even though we know little about him. It does this by immediately displaying the lonely and cold nature of his situation. We feel bad for him because, c’mon, who wouldn’t? He’s alone, with no entertainment or companionship, just the dangers of space around every corner.  

When we are introduced to Jakub’s wife, Lenka, we discover that their relationship is on its last leg. Lenka wants to divorce Jakub. This would result in the further deterioration of Jakub’s mental state, so therefore, Jakub’s boss (Rossellini) refuses to send out the message. This ends up making the character of Lenka somewhat unlikeable. There’s nothing wrong with wanting a divorce, but she never seems to compute the idea that maybe, for the sake of his mental state, she should wait until he returns. This seems reasonable considering the uniqueness of the situation and the fact that they don’t ask her to fake anything. They just want her to simply wait. Frustratingly, she refuses to do so. It comes off as a bit selfish. The fact that the film waits too long to reveal the source of their strife just compounds the issue. When a character is angry, but the audience isn’t clued into why, that character often just comes across as petty and pouty. Once more is revealed, this problem dissipates. The thing is, the film waits too long to dole out these reveals. Too little, too late. They’re also not elements that warrant a big reveal, they’re just typical exposition moments that are needed earlier to give the audience perspective and/or nuance.

Paul Dano as the voice of Hanus does a wonderful job here. His voice is essentially unrecognizable, using a deeper tone and strategic pauses to make his delivery seem truly otherworldly. What doesn’t work about this character is that it oddly feels, dare I say, “random?” If the alien is supposedly from a far-off planet, why does it just look like a bigger version of an earth-bound insect? There also aren’t any strong thematic reasons for it. The only reason that I could come up with is to create a juxtaposition within Hanus. It makes the character more interesting but doesn’t achieve anything in a story/thematic sense. 

This film is carried by the philosophical dialogue between Jakub and Hanus. It somehow dives into the psyche of human emotions without feeling pretentious or boring. This is partly due to Sandler and Dano’s ability to deliver the dialogue. It’s good dialogue, but it works because the actors know how to inject it with real pathos. Their conversations often highlight the complicated and sometimes contradictory nature of human emotions. Through these explorations, the film forms a strong emotional core. The film comes to the determination that our pursuit of dreams can sometimes lead us to abandon the ones we’ve already made a reality. Is the individual more interested in the dream or the journey? When we have what we want, do we just want more? 

Along with some flawed character work, the film has a decent amount of issues. One of those I noticed early on has to do with accents/language used in the film. In Bob Marley: One Love (2024) earlier this year, the accents were so authentic that they were often difficult to understand for a native English speaker. Spaceman makes the opposite, but equally annoying mistake of presenting the characters as Czechoslovakian yet having them speak English. This wouldn’t be a problem if Czech accents were used, but no. It’s English speakers talking with American accents who claim to be Czechoslovakian. It’s a choice that insults my intelligence as a viewer. 

The film features some half-assed satire of corporate sponsorship and/or meddling that I wish was expanded upon. It’s an element that’s strange to feature if it’s not going to mean anything in terms of the film’s plot. If anything, it seems like the movie believes corporate sponsorship/meddling isn’t that big of a deal. I don’t agree and I’m guessing the masses don’t either. 

Above all, the film’s largest issue is that it doesn’t always feel like it has a clear forward direction. This is mostly because we are set up for this dangerous space journey, but that’s never the focus. We focus mostly on Jakub’s emotional journey through his exploration of his memories. The character moves forward, but the plot rarely does. It also doesn’t help that the story generally doesn’t make much sense in certain moments. This is due to the lack of some much-needed exposition throughout the film’s early portions.

Overall, whatever this film’s many flaws may be, it remains a unique experience. It may not play well to audiences who are opposed to a more plodding and sad film, but it should feel like it’s at least worth the time to everyone else. The performances are key and carry us through the film’s more problematic plotting issues. I don’t know if I’d watch it twice, but it does make me excited to see what Johan Renck does next. C+