Ad Astra is the new film from James Gray, starring Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland and Ruth Negga. The intergalactic space film has critics and fans raving about Pitt’s performance. Some are even suggesting he should finally win an acting Oscar for his work in the film.
**WARNING AD ASTRA SPOILERS**
How long is Ad Astra?
For those fans concerned about sitting through a long space opera, they need not worry.
Ad Astra is a fairly economical two hours and four minutes long, meaning you’ll be home at a reasonable time even if you see it after a dinner out.
And despite the two hour running time, the film zips along in a way which will make audiences feel they have only taken their seat a short while before, thanks to the incredible special effects and brilliant filmmaking.
Ad Astra is certainly shorter than Pitt’s most recent film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, which comes in at a staggering two hours and 40 minutes.
It is also shorter than Pitt’s upcoming film, The King, on which he served as producer, which comes in at two hours and 15 minutes.
The King is a combination of William Shakespeare’s Henry Vi, Parts I and II, as well as Henry V, meaning the film has a lot of source material to distill into a film.
But with Timothée Chalamet playing the eponymous King, Henry V, the film will hopefully act the same as Ad Astra, and keep the audience’s attention.
What is Ad Astra about?
Ad Astra is a film about astronaut Roy McBride, played by Brad Pitt.
Roy is shocked when he discovers his father, Clifford, a renowned NASA hero, may be alive despite his being lost in action 30 years before.
Clifford was part of a groundbreaking research project, and never returned, leaving Roy with anger and frustration which he is forced to bottle up inside.
Now, he must travel through our solar system to planets lightyears apart to try to send a message to his father – but he goes on an emotional journey as he travels through space.
The film shows the true range of Brad Pitt’s acting abilities as he struggles to keep his anger inside, despite his requirement to remain calm even in the most difficult circumstances in his job.
But as things bubble to the surface, Roy also makes shocking discoveries which reveal things are not quite as they seem with his latest mission.
Ad Astra is in cinemas now