MovieChat Forums > The Space Between Us (2017) Discussion > Enjoyed this movie! BUT...some of the pl...

Enjoyed this movie! BUT...some of the plot devices...

posted 7 years ago by lostschizophrenic
11 replies | jump to latest

I enjoyed this movie, really, I did. I just have some issues with some of the main plot devices.

They used the excuse that Gary Oldman's character couldn't go into space because...undiagnosed hydrocephalus??? Um...if you have hydrocephalus, you'd definitely know. You'd be having, at the very least, headaches that painkillers wouldn't touch, possibly seizures that would lead to all kinds of tests including, likely, an MRI or CAT scan...or whatever tests they come up with in the future...I mean, this is supposed to be set in 2018 (based on the date of death on the memorial Gardner goes to) jumping to 2024-ish?

Why do I know this was a B.S. plot device? Because I've had hydrocephalus my whole life, born with it. It's treatable with surgery and (often) a thing called a shunt (a mini pump and tube) that literally drains the excess fluid from your head to somewhere else in your body. A cursory Google search will also tell you that adults who develop the condition (Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus) often do so at a later age and often experience dementia, Alzheimer's or Parkinson's type symptoms--so it actually ends up being misdiagnosed as those diseases rather than hydrocephalus. And the term "normal pressure" is a misnomer because the pressure is actually increased on the brain itself, causing the symptoms.

Unless the character has an unseen backstory of migraines, seizures, mobility issues or memory problems (unlikely because it sounded like he'd applied for the training program and it had suddenly been "discovered" that he had the condition) I'm calling B.S. on this plot device.

The other plot device (much like the storm at the beginning of "The Martian" which the author of the book admitted was B.S.) I'm calling B.S. on is the fact that they really weren't monitoring the astronauts for biological changes and potentially asking the women at least to have birth control implanted? Really? Sure, it was a private company, but they were working with at least the U.S. government and you can bet your behind Uncle Sam would want to prevent all possibility of such an "accident" with only one female astronaut and five men. Uncle Sam is deeply sexist and cautious, so putting her on the pill at least. Additionally, the Apollo astronauts were monitored for exposure to diseases for *at least* two weeks leading up to the launch of their missions--one of the Apollo 13 astronauts was grounded after being exposed to measles--so the whole 'she snuck off and got married' without anyone knowing/had sex right before the mission without anyone knowing is also suspect...There's always the "she lied about where she'd been" excuse, but dang does it stretch credulity.

I did really enjoy the movie though. I'll probably go see it again in theaters and likely end up owning it, but, seriously...some of the plot devices...smh. Once I got past some of the truly convenient and highly implausible plot devices, the story is cute and exactly what I expected it to be. It was a light, fun film and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who just wants a bit of light-hearted fluff.

[–] latinvspiscator 7 years ago

I also enjoyed the movie BUT....

I did not understand what the Indian marriage ring has got to do with Gardner's real dad.
Did Gardner's mother marry her brother?

[–] lostschizophrenic 7 years ago

No, she didn't marry her brother. The ring was split in two--like two halves of a (really simple) puzzle. His dad (Gary Oldman's character, Nathaniel Shepherd) is the one who has the other half and married her. This is stated after he pulls Gardner from the ocean. Hence the whole thing toward the end of the two of them together on Mars. You also see that Gardner left his mother's half of the ring with Tulsa and now has his dad's half. Simple, if a bit cheesy, plot point that was pretty trope for a Rom-Com, especially a teen one. 🚀⭐🌌🌠

[–] creatorof2002 7 years ago

So his dad (Gary Oldman) secretly married a woman HE WOULD NEVER SEE AGAIN or at least not FOR A VERY LONG TIME since she went to Mars and he did not? Plus he was kind of her boss since he ran that company that was sending people to Mars and he was probably twice her age? Not illegal maybe but unprofessional and creepy and a little unethical?

[–] lostschizophrenic 7 years ago

We're given no context for how long they'd been seeing each other prior to getting married/her being assigned to the mission. And, if you think about it, it's no different than members of the military who leave spouses and other family behind for deployments--except the length they expected to be separated.

Definitely unprofessional and somewhat unethical since they obviously kept their relationship a secret. Creepy? Eh, the age difference isn't my jam personally, but plenty of people have a significant other that's quite a bit older/younger than themselves. A case for nepotism/favoritism could definitely be made if he had a say in who got to go and they were in a relationship.

[–] Helenlaurence 7 years ago

And surely he should have known that she could be pregnant?

[–] lisac_2829 7 years ago

I know it's off topic. But how old are you? My niece was born with hydrocephalus and she is now 8. She has a shunt. I always wondered what her life would be like as she aged. How has it been for you?

[–] lostschizophrenic 7 years ago

Turned 31 last month. It's been pretty uneventful for me--I've been lucky and haven't needed a ton of revisions/replacements. Mostly when I was a kid, until I quit growing. My last one was when I was 14. There's a guy in my parents' neighborhood who seems to need them every 4-5 years (and he's a good 15 years older than me)...But really, it hasn't stopped me from doing anything. I do keep in mind that I'll probably need surgery again eventually, but it isn't a huge worry since I have good insurance through my job. 

[–] lisac_2829 7 years ago

Awesome. Thank you for replying. I am glad you are doing well.

[–] lostschizophrenic 7 years ago

You're welcome! Hope your niece does just as well!

[–] lisac_2829 7 years ago

Thank you so much!

[–] LeiaOfLothlorien (1980) 7 years ago

Yeah, I feel similarly about the movie. If you can suspend belief, it's a nice sweet movie. If not, you'll just get caught up on the details and scientific inaccuracies.

The pregnancy did bug me, however. They definitely would have done preflight medical checks and would have caught something like that. Maybe if she had sex literally the night before take-off and it was too early to detect that she was pregnant?

Also, the whole Internet access thing on Mars... That's stretching credibility. Especially the fact that it's instantaneous. Maybe if they just exchanged emails that took a few hours/days to get to each other?