The Basic Predicament of The Moon

Many of the best survival-oriented movies work like a line of dominoes: their best bits catalyze one another, the action of one is impossible without the drama of another. In Uncut Gems (2019), a lightly disguised survival film, each and every action by Howard (Adam Sandler) is a reaction to, cover-up of, or parlay based on his last action. His survival in the world of sports gambling depends on his ability to respond to the present situation accordingly. Howie gives his precious opal to the Boston Celtics’ Kevin Garnett, takes the latter’s championship ring as collateral, and then pawns the ring short-term to ameliorate his immediate financial situation. With every subsequent decision, Howie knocks into the next like a train of dominoes initiated from this basic predicament.

Kim Yong Hwa’s The Moon superficially has a similar feeling to Uncut Gems: in the near future, the protagonist repeatedly and quickly finds himself trapped in a series of impossible situations with only bad outcomes to be found. Stranded in space, alone, and not knowing how to fly the spaceship, Sun-woo (Do Kyung-soo) first faces a strong solar wind that damages the ship and causes the death of his crew mates; after the solar wind, a series of natural disasters and bad luck rue all escape or rescue plans. The inciting events, while technically (occasionally) related to one another (the communications are down because of the solar wind), depend on dramatics that are largely unrelated to each previous incident. Each scene feels like an interchangeable episode, insertable into almost any part of the film while only changing a few incidental details.

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