Interstellar

Interstellar

 (2014)

A Review by Grant Kanigan

Directed by: Christopher Nolan

Written by: Jonathan Nolan, Christopher Nolan

Starring: Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine,

              David Gyasi, Jessica Chastain, Mackenzie Foy

Rating: PG
Release Date: November 7th 2014

Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway and David Gyasi in Interstellar
Source: interstellar.withgoogle.com/transmissions#/gallery 

     I've had a hunch for a while now that Christopher Nolan might be the saviour of cinema. He's on a personal campaign to the combat digital projection of film, (he vehemently opposed it in Christopher Kenneally's Side by Side), and forced the studio producing Interstellar to screen the film early on 70mm film in IMAX theatres. But his technological requirements are outshined by his directorial style; with the exemplary effects and labyrinthian plotting of Inception, the crowd pleasing bombast of The Dark Knight and the indie-weird sensibility of Memento, Nolan has found a little something to please every crowd. Yet, with the aforementioned films, he was always making some concession to please a certain crowd. With his latest thrill-ride, Nolan combines all three idiosyncratic sensibilities to make one of the most daring films ever made, and satisfies his entire audience in the process. 

     Interstellar follows Cooper, (Matthew McConaughey), an engineer, former jet pilot, and modern farmer. Set in a futuristic world much like our own, Earth's resources are nearly depleted, global warming has ravaged agriculture, and food supplies are dwindling. Living in a post-globalized world where much of the population has simply died off from famine, Cooper's family struggles to maintain their corn crops, which soon become the last viable crop on the planet. When happenstance introduces Cooper and his inquisitive daughter Murphy to a secret version of NASA, (in Nolan's future science has been replaced with politically correct textbooks that deny the moon landing ever happened - check out the clip below), Cooper is told by Professor Brand, (Michael Caine), that Murphy's generation will be the last to survive on Earth; unless Cooper can find a new home in another galaxy. To discuss the plot in further detail would be to take away to joy of discovery, exploration and epiphany - Nolan's marketing crew is aware of this fact. Nary a shot past the hour mark of Interstellar is shown in most of the film's marketing material. 

    Nolan isn't shy of showcasing his influences. The beginning shots of outer space, void of sound, are eerily reminiscent of the sound design of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey's HAL-9000 watching Dr. Bowman and Dr. Poole's lips as they plot against him. The docking facility, and it's artificial gravity, (made possible by centrifugal force), are much like the spacecraft of 2001. Additionally, Nolan's robotic helpers, CASE and TARS are complete take-offs of HAL-9000, (sans the malevolence). Yet, never once does this come off as plagiarism - Nolan is merely acknowledging his predecessors, and if anything, paying homage to the great cinematic minds of yesteryear. As well, as the saying goes, Nolan stands on the shoulders of cinematic giants. 

     Kubrick, in 2001, risked a lot, (in creative worth and box office receipts), in making a psychedelic trip/meditative film on the nature of mankind's existence - yet he was ambiguous enough to allow viewers to interpret his film in a variety of ways. Nolan trumps Kubrick's space trip by refusing ambiguity; a lot of criticism has been leveled at Nolan for including a few debates, (largely between platonic shipmates McConaughey and Hathaway), on love. By including philosophical and even metaphysical arguments on the nature of love itself, (which can be switched to the synonymous term altruism for the science-minded), Nolan firmly asserts his philosophical leanings in a largely scientific movie, (physicist Kip Thorne was a consultant on the science behind Interstellar). And why wouldn't astronauts, going to the farthest reaches of space, talk about the one thing that has puzzled scholars, writers, poets and physicists; love? I challenge you to read a Carl Sagan book and not find multiple quotes on love, altruism and selflessness. With his philosophical leanings, Nolan has finally made a film where his literary strengths match his imaginative set pieces, and the result is mindblowing.

     Not only are the visual effects and script revolutionary, but the acting is superb. McConaughey, whom we all thought was on top of his game in Dallas Buyers Club and True Detective knocks it out of the park here; he truly is one of the best of his generation. The film demands he displays decades of grief in minutes, and he does so beautifully, without stooping to sentimentality or overacting. McConaughey commands the film and gives it the humanistic touch it needs to push past the stratosphere. As in most Nolan films, the ensemble is exuberant; Hathaway perfectly conveys concerned dissonance, Caine plays an arrogant professor, somewhat against type and becomes a different man, Chastain displays a rare platonic yearning for fatherly love, and John Lithgow, as Cooper's father, likely has the role of his career here - subtly grieving for a son he'll probably never see again and completely immersing himself in the role. There's plethora of great acting on display here, and not one actor is off their game - it's tough to leave out names in this review; they're all fantastic. Wes Bentley, Casey Affleck and a certain actor who will go unnamed are greatly cast as small, but extremely important supporting characters. Cinematically, Nolan has inherited the obsessiveness of Kubrick. The sound design is impeccable, (blowing away 2013's idiotic mess Gravity), the shots wonderfully placed, and the grand set pieces are awe-inspiring. Cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema, taking over for Nolan usual Wally Pfister, might just give Pfister a run for his money. This is some of the best cinematography I've seen in years, and probably the best in a Nolan film since Insomnia. Overall, Interstellar is the rare occurrence where the stars align to create something truly brilliant. At 169 minutes, Interstellar is a masterpiece. 

     I would love to discuss this film in further detail, and go over the wonderfully executed displays of theoretical physics in action, black holes, time dilation and wormholes, but to do so would ruin a lot of the surprises and direction of the film. Once Interstellar has had a decent run on home video, I'll return to the physics in the film and the jaw-dropping ending in a future post. If you think I have spoiled anything by mentioning those components of space, I have not - just look upwards. It's all there.  

Grant's Rating: 5/5 Stars

Interstellar Clip: "Useless Machines"

Carl Sagan's Pale Blue Dot

Theatrical Trailer for Side by Side. Nolan is at the 1:00 mark.