INTERSTELLAR – The Review

The movies’ love affair with space exploration is almost as old as the movies themselves, reaching all the way back to A TRIP TO THE MOON with that iconic image of a rocket planting itself in the eye of the man in the moon way, waaay back in 1902. For most of the next decades, outer space became a backdrop for flights of fancy, from the classic 1930’s “Flash Gordon” kiddie matinee serials through the “Star Wars” and “Star Trek” franchises (with this Summer’s mega hit GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY igniting another series). It wasn’t until 1968’s 2001: A SPACE ODYSSEY that film makers really began grounding space flight flicks in a more scientific reality, much like last year’s GRAVITY, while THE RIGHT STUFF and APOLLO 13 looked back on the history of manned space missions. Now, after completing a successful screen revamp of the caped crusader for the “Dark Knight trilogy”, writer/director Christopher Nolan turns his attention to the stars with INTERSTELLAR. And although it’s set in a near future, he brings a more realistic depiction of the science and physics that any movie ride we’ve taken with the Enterprise or the Jedi Knights. And just as many heart-stopping thrills.

The film journey begins with talking-head video testimonials of senior citizens describing their young lives during a past similar to the 1930’s “dust bowl” America. But they’re not speaking of that far-off time. It’s the near future that’s being documented. Cut to just a scan few years from today. Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) is jolted awake after a nightmare flashback from his past as test pilot. Those days are long gone as he hurries to get his kids off to school with the help of his late wife’s dad, Donald (John Lithgow). Cooper’s a big corn farmer who also repairs the equipment for neighbors. Corn’s the only crop growable since a worldwide blight has wiped out all others and is producing horrific dust storms that make those from the 30’s seem like gentle Spring breezes. Everything is caked with a heavy coat of soil and soot. After looking into some bizarre happenings in her room (a ghost, perhaps?), Coop’s brainy daughter Murph (Mackenzie Foy) tags along with her pop and discovers a hidden, fenced-in compound deep in the desert. It houses a group of scientists led by Coop’s old mentor, Professor Brand (Michael Caine), who have built an exploratory rocket/spacecraft on the QT. They believe the Earth is doomed, with the only hope for survival resting on a wormhole to another galaxy near Saturn. One crew has already made the trek, but they’ve lost contact . Brand believes that Coop’s piloting skills will make the mission a success and lead them to a new habitable planet for mankind to begin anew. Murph pleads with her father not to go, but he must make the trip, no matter how many years it may take. So, along with Brand’s daughter Amelia (Anne Hathaway), and scientists Doyle (Wes Bentley) and Romilly (David Gyasi), Cooper pilots the good ship Endurance on a journey to find a new home for humanity.

It goes without saying that McConaughey looks dashingly heroic in his space suit, but he surprises by bringing so much emotion to what might have been a stoic, almost Western-style role (instead of facing down outlaws on the noon train, he’s taking on the universe). He shows us the inner torment of a man agonizing over the decision to leave his kids in order to save them. Coop’s a warm and supportive farmer father, but we can see his repressed frustration over giving up his true calling and passion. Once he’s back in the pilot’s seat we can tell that he’s finally home, using all his considerable skills and instincts for this mission. Hathaway’s a terrific co-pilot who doesn’t ignore her heart when making the big decisions. Foy is a most compelling child actor as the sibling with an unbreakable bond with her father. Her reaction to Coop’s departure his heart-wrenching. Caine brings his twinkley grandfather-ly charm to the role of the wise old sage who sends his four knights out on a desperate quest. How can Coop resist his call to destiny? Lithgow avoids cranky clichés as the actual Earth grandpa’. He calls out his son-in-law without hesitation. Jessica Chastain shines in the film’s second act as the Earth bound tech whiz trying to get word back from the explorers. It’s a role that recalls her unflinchingly determined Maya in ZERO DARK THIRTY. She just knows that the right answer will come to her…soon. There’s also some wonderful work from Ellen Burstyn. Bill Irwin, and …well, I won’t spoil the surprise. It’s truly an all-star cast, up there in the stars.

Nolan takes movie goers on the most exhilarating trek since Kubrick blasted off. Make an effort to see it on the biggest screen with the best sound possible. His vision of space is an endless star-specked vista with these travelers mere floating specks. The theatre seats vibrate as the sound effects makes us feel as though we’re strapped in alongside them as the ship is pummeled and buffeted. Hans Zimmer abandons the big drums for a score that almost feels like it was pumped through the largest pipe organ of the grandest cathedral, lauding the majesty of the heavens. The art direction gives the ship and its controls a nice worn, cobbled-together look, particularly with the helper-robot TRASK who resembles an ambulatory cold-steel “Kit Kat” bar with a data screen for a heart. Some of the exposition dialogue gets hazy with some wonky logic and lines muffled in the often chaotic action sequences. Much of the time on Earth seems to be the script spinning its wheels till the big launch (the retrieval of an old aerial antique in the first act doesn’t really pay off dramatically). And the addition of a dimensional MC Escher-like maze in the last act gets mired in speculative ‘gobbledygook” and feels endless, adding too much to its nearly three-hour running time. But these faults don’t detract from the film’s scope, its grandeur (helped by the inspired cinematography of Hoyte Van Hoytema on alien hills and valleys). Christopher Nolan, along with screenwriting partner, brother Jonathan, has crafted a tribute to history’s pioneers, and a rallying cry for the world to take up the torch once more and, as a famous captain says, explore strange new worlds. INTERSTELLAR is a tribute to courage, curiosity, and love along with being one helluva’ ride. Initiate countdown!

4 Out of 5