Editor’s note: The following contains spoilers for ‘Spaceman’.

The Big Picture

Spaceman
is a dramatic film that showcases Adam Sandler’s acting range with a storyline focused on self-awareness.
The Chopra cloud symbolizes a journey of self-discovery for protagonist Jakub as he comes to understand his past and prioritize his relationships.
The film’s ending emphasizes the importance of appreciating loved ones and making amends for past mistakes, showcasing the theme of redemption.

The long partnership between Adam Sandler and Netflix is still going strong with the release of his new drama/science fiction film Spaceman. The story of a Czech astronaut, Jakub Procházka, on a solo discovery mission to research an enormous and mysterious purple light called the Chopra cloud, has roared to the top of the streamer’s top 10 movie list. Johan Renck (Chernobyl) directs what marks a significant change for Sandler as an actor. It is the most serious and dramatic piece of his long career, starring opposite the great Carey Mulligan. The two are only in flashback scenes together, as Sandler shoulders a heavy load in a movie that features him either alone or conversing with what may or may not be a hallucinatory image.

Spaceman Jakub Procházka, orphaned as a boy and raised in the Czech countryside by his grandparents, overcomes his odds to become the country’s first astronaut.Release Date March 1, 2024 Director Johan Renck Runtime 107 minutes Studio Netflix

What is ‘Spaceman’ About?
Sandler and Mulligan play a married couple going through a very rough patch as Jakub has been away from Earth for 189 days and Mulligan’s character, Lenka, has grown weary of being alone and wants to separate—a message which has been kept from Jakub by those on the ground. With Jakub not receiving any new messages from Lenka via Czech Connect (a Zoom-like channel), Jakub begins to feel the isolation of being so far from Lenka and her companionship. The longer Lenka goes without returning his messages, the further he descends into madness, where he begins to see an enormous, friendly, and introspective spider named Hanus (voiced by Paul Dano) who keeps him company as he approaches the Chopra cloud. As he comes to depend on the companionship of Hanus to maintain his sanity, he realizes that he is on his own journey of self-awareness and discovery. Hanus serves as a sounding board and counselor for Jakub as he comes to terms with his childhood and his marriage. Together, Jakub and Hanus go into the Chopra cloud, and it puts things into perspective for Jakub.

Jakub and Hanus Discover Everything Is Connected

Jakub and Hanus are eager to see what the Chopra cloud is as they approach the strange and resplendent phenomenon. Hanus seems to already have an idea of what the Chopra cloud is telling Jakub that it is “The beginning” of something saying “Come, let me show you.” As they get very close to entering, small particles that make up the cloud flash like fireflies. They cannot be contained as Jakub vies to trap one in a glass jar only to see the particle float through the glass and out of the ship. Jakub exits the ship in his spacesuit and joins Hanus as they float into the center of the cloud. It has an Interstellar quality about it similar to the Gargantua black hole that Joseph Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) ventures into. Fully immersed in the Chopra cloud, Jakub becomes aware of existence at a much more profound and existential level. Hanus says “Everything is connected.” Jakub is dumbfounded as he witnesses small bits of his life replaying in the form of pulsating, illuminating, visible granular soundwaves. Hanus says, “This is the beginning and the ending. Every vibration of all time. It is all contained here. Your past and your future.”

What Does Jakub Realize at the End of ‘Spaceman’?

The most important part of Jakub’s journey into the Chopra cloud is that he realizes how selfish he has been. Hanus shows him how he has never been there for Lenka in the most important parts of her life, including a miscarriage that he didn’t even know about. He begins to understand that by spending so much time away from his soul mate, he has been selfishly running away from his past and his fears. He has visions of first meeting Lenka and knows that the only thing he ever wanted was for good things to happen to her. It is the one thing he knows for sure. And while he is in the middle of “everything,” it still doesn’t matter, because he doesn’t have Lenka by his side to be by his side to witness it. Hanus dies as they emerge from the Chopra cloud, and he knows that his purpose is to make things right with his love. He thanks Hanus for everything and the giant spider is consumed by “Germapods” evaporating into a cloud of particles.

“I Would Have Never Left”
Image via Netflix

After the epiphany that Hanus shows him in the Chopra cloud, Jakub knows that for his life to have meaning and a way for him to not feel the loneliness of being so far away in space, he needs Lenka. He has a vision of himself wading through a shallow creek still in his space suit seeing Lenka sitting on a log dressed the same way he saw her for the first time. He is picked up by a nearby satellite and immediately calls Lenka. She is by her car in the countryside at the foot of a vast and lush rolling hill. Her cell phone rings and she picks up to talk to Jakub. He says, “If I had known then what I know now, I never would have left.” Lenka responds, “If I had known then what I know now, would I have kissed you?” Jakub responds, “Would you? Would you kiss me again? In essence, meaning “Would you give me another chance to make you happy?” Lenka slowly smiles and says the final line of the movie, “It was a really good kiss…” meaning she would be open to a reconciliation. By going to the farthest reaches of space, Jakub figures out that the real meaning of his life has been right under his nose, and he hasn’t appreciated how great she and their marriage are and can be.

Spaceman is currently available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.

WATCH ON NETFLIX