Sometime in the near future past (when we still had space shuttles), a routine mission to service the Hubble goes horribly wrong resulting in an astronaut being cast off into the void . She must use her training and limited experience to survive.
Gravity is an amazingly visual film, more or less an extended showreel for director Alfonso Cuarón (best known for Children of Men) to indulge his passion for really long, complex shots. His style work really well for this type of story, the camera drifts with the characters in space, subtly framing the action or lingering on the planet below.
Everything is choreographed perfectly, I wish more directors and editors would follow Cuarón's lead. We live in the age of great CGI but people still cut films like they are trying to hide the seams that don't need to exist anymore.
The long shots also serve to make use of 3D tolerable, indeed even enjoyable. The crisp lighting of space and the fact that background is hundreds of miles away makes the foreground really pop, while the leisurely camera motion lets your eyes just soak it in. I saw Gravity in IMAX 3D and it is the only film to date that I can recommend paying the extra money for.
Is there anything bad about Gravity? I didn't really care for the dialog which verges on corny in places. To be brutally honest Gravity might work better as a silent movie with a soundtrack containing only ambient sounds and music. Sandra Bullock does an OK job and Clooney amps up his Clooneyness to 11 but neither of them really steal the show. But that is actually fine, since the visuals, nail-biting story, and clever sound design take up the slack.
Not perfect but very well worth seeing, especially on the big screen. Highly recommend.