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Aug 16, 20174536o rated this title 4.5 out of 5 stars
This film is far better than the book, with its bulky, 12-member space-exploration crew. (Dr. Sagan was a great science popularizer, but not also a great novelist.) Some may fidget at the slow pace, but since "2001" this has been a useful film device to symbolize the vast emptiness of space. There is a bit too much of "Dr. Strangelove" in the reactions of the national-security people -- for one, James Woods comes off as a total jerk (in his case, art imitating life) -- but this is more than overcome by the inquisitive young Ellie (Jena Malone) and even more so by the persistent mature Ellie (the always-great Jodie).