Interstellar: Review
I had no idea what to expect the first time I watched Interstellar. I was going in almost fully blind – I had never seen the trailer or read a review. The little information that I had gathered just by scrolling through social media was that it was a sci-fi CGI-fest starring Matthew McConaughey. I expected something like the summer blockbusters The Edge of Tomorrow or Lucy; a sci-fi movie with a great lead actor/actress that falls flat because of a lackluster plot and/or overreliance on special effects.
Ugh, count me out.
But somehow I was roped into watching Interstellar anyways and I gave up two and a half hours of my precious weekend time to this movie. Fortunately for me, Interstellar was a far cry away from what I expected. Right from the beginning I could tell that it was spectacularly different from other movies of its same genre.
Interstellar takes place in the not-so-distant-future very similar to the Dust Bowl: crops are failing and humanity is dwindling. The focus has been taken off of exploration space travel and put back onto more pressing issues, like growing food. Cooper, played by Matthew McConaughey, is a widowed ex-engineer/NASA pilot living with his two children, Tom and Murphy, and his father-in-law who runs a corn farm. Despite humanity's best efforts, the Earth can no longer sustain human life. Cooper leaves his family to pilot a secret NASA mission through a wormhole and into another galaxy in search of a new, more hospitable home.
Of course, the plot is much more complicated than that. But considering Interstellar is directed by Christopher Nolan, the same man who directed the hit, Inception, that's no surprise. Interstellar was anything but predictable. There are so many twists and turns that you might think you're actually watching a film by M. Night Shamalan. There's some well-placed foreshadowing, some beautiful metaphors and motifs, and a handful of other devices that your English teacher would definitely love.
It must be said that there were some significant plot holes, and that a good portion of the 'science' presented in Interstellar isn't really true science. However, I would definitely say that the plot is one of the best parts of the movie. It constantly keeps you on the edge of your seat, and there is never a dull moment, despite the two and a half hour runtime. Interstellar doesn't need to rely on special effects and CGI to be a great movie; the plot alone is spectacular.
However, the special effects and CGI in Interstellar are incredible. Stunning visuals of planets and galaxies look impossibly real, and it truly feels like you could reach out and touch the gadgets and technology that Cooper and his crew are using. I especially loved how some other aspects of space and time were portrayed. I've never imagined what a wormhole, or a black hole, or another dimension would look like in real life, but if they are any bit as gorgeous as the ones in Interstellar, I would gladly leave behind my family to travel through space and time to see one (sorry, Mom!). The audio was also spectacular. Both the original score and the sound mixing of Interstellar were nominated for Academy Awards, and I'm surprised they didn't win.
Although Interstellar is a good movie, I was largely disappointed in the characters. Right from the beginning it's apparent that a large part of the film's focus would be on the bond between Cooper and Murphy, but their relationship felt underdeveloped and forced, just like the other characters and relationships in the movie. The characters seemed very one-dimensional, and it felt like they were vehicles to tell the story, rather than layered characters that you could get to know and empathize with. There was a fair amount of space-related death in this movie, but the character I mourned the most was a robot. A literal robot.
However, considering that the plot is so great, I'll give the underdeveloped characters a pass.
Interstellar is worth seeing just for its special effects, but it has so much more to offer. If you have two and one half hours to spare, I'd definitely recommend Interstellar.