“THE AERONAUTS” — 2 1⁄2 stars — Felicity Jones, Eddie Redmayne, Himesh Patel, Tom Courtenay; PG-13 (some peril and thematic elements); in general release; running time: 100 minutes
SALT LAKE CITY — Tom Harper’s “The Aeronauts” pairs dazzling spectacle with a first-rate actor reunion. It’s visually impressive, but floating under the surface is a story thin on substance and historical accuracy.
Loosely based on the 2013 book “Falling Upwards” — and inspired by an actual 1862 hot air balloon ascent — “The Aeronauts” follows a pair of unlikely 19th-century adventurers as they chase an elusive and dangerous ballooning record.
Felicity Jones plays Amelia Wren, a talented hot air balloon pilot whose flamboyant sense of spectacle belies some serious inner demons. As the film opens, she’s about to set off on an expedition out of London to climb higher than any balloon has ever ascended — the current record is 23,000 feet — but behind the scenes, her usual confidence is undercut by nerves and doubts.
Amelia’s partner is James Glaisher (Eddie Redmayne), a dedicated scientist who has far more serious motives in mind for the excursion. Though the flight is played up for its grandiose, crowd-pleasing entertainment value, James is much more focused on gathering readings during the ascent that will hopefully lead to a breakthrough in meteorological science.
The tension between the two characters is palpable as Amelia arrives late to the launch, suppressing her nerves behind an acrobatic devil-may-care performance on the balloon’s basket to stir up the gathered crowd. James has been mocked for his efforts, and resents Amelia’s insistence on using props like a passenger dog to play up the event.
Once the couple is in the air, though, Amelia settles into her pilot role, and the tensions start to come more from their environment than their competing philosophies. An unexpected electrical storm exposes the reality of their vulnerable plight, but that’s just the first of many internal and external conflicts the duo has to manage on its way to challenging the ascent record.
As we follow Amelia and James, a series of rather predictable flashbacks fill in the gaps to their backstories. Most of the effort is focused on Amelia, who we learn is still recovering from a tragic ballooning accident several years earlier. Through a combination of character-exploring and high-stakes action sequences set thousands of feet in the air, “The Aeronauts” works hard to connect with audiences on multiple levels.
Fans will enjoy seeing Jones and Redmayne reunited onscreen after their portrayal of Jane and Stephen Hawking in “The Theory of Everything,” which netted Oscar nominations for both (and a win for Redmayne). Though Redmayne’s performance as the famous astrophysicist was the focus of that effort, Jones’ Amelia is the central protagonist in “Aeronaut” — though interestingly enough, Amelia is a fictionalized amalgam of a character, taking the place of Glaisher’s real-life partner with some degree of controversy.
If you’ve seen any of the promotional materials, you’ll understand that historical accuracy and character development ultimately take a back seat to a series of gripping midair action scenes. The third act finale in particular is a welcome and intense sequence, partially for its own merits, and partially because the film has a tendency to drag a little bit in its down time.
“The Aeronauts” isn’t exactly a movie you need to rush out and see, but if you do see it, it would be best appreciated in a theater (or at least on a very large TV). It complements some moments of death-defying challenge with some insightful exploration of human weakness, even if the filmmakers have altered the real-life source material a bit too much.
Rating explained: “The Aeronauts” is rated PG-13 for some intense and frightening sequences.