Upside Down (3½ Stars)

What if love were stronger than gravity?

The film takes place in a dual planetary system. Two planets orbit the same sun, side by side, in close proximity to one another. Each has its own gravitational system. Matter is attracted by the gravity of the planet it comes from, even if it's taken to the other planet. The planet Up is oppulent, while the people of Down live in squalor. Even though people from Up occasionally visit Down, because it's considered quaint, people from Down are forbidden to visit Up, and social contact is punishable by death.

Adam is a boy from Down, Eden is a girl from Up. They meet by accident while they're climbing mountains that almost touch each other. They fall in love, but they're separated after an accident in which Eden falls back to her own planet. Ten years later they're both working for Transworld, an interplanetary company with a building that connects the two planets. Adam illegally enters her half of the building to rekindle their relationship.

Despite being portrayed as a science fiction film, this is a fairy tale, rich in allegory. It can be interpreted in many different ways, from class divisions to racism. The fairy tale aspect is the film's greatest weakness. From the beginning it's predictable that there will be a happy ending. There's never any doubt that love is stronger than gravity.