Solaris

Release date: November 27, 2002

The Pitch:

George Clooney investigates a planet that messes with your head by bringing dead people back to life.

Why You Need It:

Steven Soderbergh's dreamy take on Stanislaw Lem's egghead sci-fi novel (previous adapted by Russian director Andrei Tarkovsky in 1972) casts a mesmerizing spell, with George Clooney giving one of his best performances as a psychologist haunted by the suicide of his free spirit wife sent to investigate strange occurrences on board a space station orbiting the bizarre planet of Solaris. The film is more interested in character and emotion than plot and action (which is rather odd, considering James Cameron was one of the producers) - the result is a fascinating tone poem with much to reward the patient viewer. Cliff Martinez's haunting score also deserves a special mention - the film unfolds to its hypnotic rhythms.

Talent:

Steven Soderbergh (director), George Clooney, Natascha McElhone, Jeremy Davies, Viola Davis, Ulrich Tukur, John Cho, Morgan Rusler, Shane Skelton.