Deep Sky
2023, NR, 40 min. Directed by Nathanial Kahn. Narrated by Michelle Williams.
REVIEWED By Kimberley Jones, Fri., April 19, 2024
If your mind’s-eye understanding of the cosmos is still rooted in images beamed back from the Hubble Space Telescope, then time to meet the James Webb Space Telescope – science’s version of “hold my beer.” Launched on Dec. 25, 2021, after an astonishing 20 years of conception and build time, the JWST is the most sophisticated space telescope ever constructed, as this IMAX documentary from Oscar-nominated documentarian Nathaniel Kahn (My Architect) details. At a brisk 40-minute runtime, the film disappointingly has to burn rubber through the logistics and problem-solving stage, but the upshot is a faster path beaten to the dazzling visuals. Narrated by Michelle Williams with a just-right mix of gravitas, wonder, and soothingness, this journey into deep space is ripe for existential musings. No definitive answers here, but it’s a great conversation starter.
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