On Screen Movie Review: INTERSTELLAR

Article by RABID TRIBBLE

As I start writing my very first film review for the Blue Report, I’d like to make myself clear as to what my objectives and qualifications are, so you folks understand my perspective better.

I will not always write reviews on the most current films, since I’m not usually very up-to-date with the latest releases. For example, this year I’ve only been to see Avengers: Age of Ultron so far. I will be buying some of the other noteworthy films of this summer later this year, as they come out on Blu-Ray.  In any case, I do have (if I do say so myself) a rather vast knowledge of cinema. In other words, I’m quite confident that your favorite films are in good hands with me.

For my very first review, I’d like to revisit an excellent science fiction film from last year, Interstellar, by Christopher Nolan. Nolan, who has never yet made a bad film in his entire career, has created what is arguably the best true science fiction film since those three gems from 2009: District 9, Star Trek and Avatar.  For Interstellar, Nolan had ambitious plans to make a grand epic on the scale of Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (1967) and Andrei Tarkovsky’s Solaris (1972).  For the most part, he succeeds nicely. Interstellar gives the viewer a sense of the wonder and mystery of space. Such an angle hasn’t been tackled much in a long time. Space nowadays is usually treated simply as a plot device in sci-fi films to advance the plot from point A to point B. Space ships cross the unimaginable vastness of space in what seems like a quick hop----like getting in your car and driving to the next town. Star Wars and---to a lesser extent---Star Trek both treat the concept of space travel in this way (though, to be fair, both those franchises do explore the mystery and sense of wonder of space travel and exploration.)

I don’t want to delve too much into the plot of movies in my reviews, because I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone who hasn’t seen the films, so I’ll just give a brief synopsis. Because of humanity’s longtime destruction of the environment, the Earth is about to become uninhabitable. Famine threatens to wipe out the entire human race unless a new habitable planet similar to Earth can be found. However, as it happens, a stable worm hole has been discovered by scientists, opening the possibility of finding such a planet in a far corner of the galaxy. The bulk of the movie involves the search for an adoptive world for the human race, and the wonders and mysteries of the universe that are encountered along the way, including the aforementioned wormhole, and also a black hole. The special effects are top notch. Nolan takes the minimalist approach on this film, just like Kubrick and Tarkovsky did on their own masterpieces. The main protagonists, comprised of Mathew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, and Matt Damon, all turn in excellent performances. Also notably, there are a couple of friendly, very useful robots that function as real characters in this film, and their design is like nothing you have ever seen before. They are fascinating to watch, and as the film progresses, you see more and more just how incredible these machines are.

Interstellar (2014) is a terrific science fiction film that I would recommend to any sci-fi fan. It is a bit slow moving, in the tradition of the sweeping epic masterpieces, but it is a very rewarding experience if the viewer watches the movie with his/her full attention. Talking about the merits of the film here is of course a little bit like preaching to the converted. All of you are sci-fi and fantasy fans, and have probably seen the film already. If so, you have hopefully enjoyed it! If not, watch it ASAP and allow yourself to be enthralled with the amazing visuals and captivating story.