"Mankind was born on Earth. It was never meant to die here." Such was the memorable line by Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) in Interstellar...Christopher Nolan's latest sci-fi flick that is an epic tale about environmental disasters, space exploration, love, familial relationships and the theory of relativity. Just like his 2010 Best Picture nominee Inception, Interstellar is another thought-provoking film by Nolan that makes one wonder about the possibilities made by scientific breakthroughs. In Inception's case, it was the ability to enter other people's dreams and use them to alter their behavior out in the real world. In Interstellar's case, it was the ability to use wormholes to visit other locales in the universe (which isn't an original idea, I know) and black holes to gain access to a particular moment in time and utilize it to change the future. The fact that Chris Nolan employed the help of a well-known physicist (Kip Thorne) to bring plausibility to his story shows just what an extraordinary filmmaker that the director is. Nolan is always conveying cinematic tales that carry social messages...whether it's the themes of anarchy and not losing one's self to madness in The Dark Knight, the ability to let go of anger and the past to seek happiness and contentment in The Dark Knight Rises, and to going to the ends of the earth (or in this case, the universe) to save loved ones and reunite with family members in Interstellar.
The only downsides of Interstellar were the lengthy running time and the movie's sound mix. The flaws of Inception and this film were that there are lots of expository dialogue explaining the concept of Nolan's stories...and the movies didn't get quite interesting or action-packed till the third act of the films. In regards to the sound mix, Interstellar suffered from a loud music score (even though it's by the capable hands of Hans Zimmer) that at times overshadowed crucial dialogue scenes in the flick...which was also the case in Inception and The Dark Knight Rises. While it is a likely chance that I'll buy this sci-fi opus on DVD next year, I don't relish the thought of having to constantly turn the volume up and down (and vice versa) when I watch it on TV—which is what I've been doing with Nolan's last two Batman movies and Inception. Other than that, Interstellar is a very intelligent movie—and one that should gain a couple of Oscar nominations early next year. As a space enthusiast, I appreciate Nolan's attempt at pro-space advocacy with this movie. Though I must ask: How many space geeks reading this review wanted Cooper to smack that teacher (played by the talented Collette Wolfe) who asserted that the Apollo Moon landings were a hoax meant to bankrupt the Soviet Union? I hope I wasn't the only one pissed off by that scene (which I'm sure is what Nolan intended)... That is all.
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