INTERSTELLAR

In the not too distant future, planet Earth begins to undergo calamitous climate changes. Dust storms and infertile soil have caused drought and famine. The preservation of the human race relies on the search for an alternative planet to inhabit. The fate of mankind now rests on the shoulders of four astronauts who must traverse through a mysterious wormhole into an unknown galaxy and find a new viable home-world.

As much as I wanted Interstellar to be a mind-boggling journey that would redefine the Science-Fiction genre, I have to settle for it being an enjoyable cinematic ride. Needless to say flaws in the script are evident. Firstly the film's running time, nearing the three hour mark is considerably uncalled for. But the human drama, especially the relationship between Cooper and his daughter is heartfelt. The Nolan brothers have a habit of including a lot of exposition dialogue in their scripts where they spoon feed explanations to the film's theories, and true to form this is prevalent in Interstellar. During the first act the story hypothesizes the existence of an advanced alien race who helpfully placed the worm hole in our Solar System but as the third act unfolds this plot point is never really explored to full extent.

Although the story and script contain a few blemishes, the acting performances are close to perfection. The group of quality players comprised of Michael Caine, John Lithgow, Wes Bentley, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and the young actress Mackenzie Foy are all commendable but Matthew McConaughey's performance is the bait that keeps you hooked. The McConaughey Acting Revival did not peak with Dallas Buyers Club (2013), he just keeps getting better with every new role he tackles.

Despite the fact that the visual effects of Interstellar is stunning, my biggest gripe with the cinematography are the innumerable frames of the spacecraft photographed as if by cameras attached to the outer body of the vessel. Wide-shots of the spacecrafts are seldom and I feel that this ultimately impaired the look of the film and what could have been some iconic sci-fi movie imagery.

Christopher Nolan is one of my favourite film-makers, he is a superlative storyteller who makes going to the cinema exciting. But even his cinematic Midas Touch has started to wane since The Dark Knight Rises (2012). Perhaps Nolan's inherent desire to make a sci-fi epic was cause for the lack in quality. This isn't the next 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), this isn't the next Contact (1997), this doesn't even explore the existence of mankind in a profoundly new way. The pacing of the story is sloppy, the ending is curiously anti-climactic and some plot points are a bit too convenient. But that being said, the film is creative; example being the two planets they land on. The film is enticing due to the 'quest' element in the story and all in all the film is entertaining and worth the watch regardless of the polarising opinions out there.

Rating: 7/10

S. V. Fernando