'Interstellar' Nolan Fans Member Reviews

Christopher Nolan's 2014 grand scale science-fiction story about time and space, and the things that transcend them.
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Z.Cobb's Simple Interstellar Review:

I'm going to quote The Prestige:

'Man's reach exceeds his imagination'

I believe that quote could not be more literal when referring to Interstellar.

Interstellar has little minor issues, many have highlighted them here. However these are not enough to take away the emotions I felt throughout the film. There are some truly great moments of cinema in this film. Hauntingly tragic.

It's not quite a masterpiece, but its not too far away either, great ideas and performances, just lacking a little bit of finesse, which is rather surprising.

8.7/10

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Act 1: 7/10 - Felt rushed
Act 2: 4/10 - Flawed
Act 3: 10/10 - Masterpiece

Overall: 7/10

Act 3 was one of the most mesmerising, mind blowing/bending experience i have ever had while watching a movie. This piece alone will be timeless and talked about in years to come!

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10/10.

First things first, this movie requires you to have faith. Requires you to drop whatever preconceived notions you have about how a sci-fi or space or thriller movie should be, because Nolan hasn't made this one to please the audience, to play safe. Nolan has made this movie as an artist would, not as a businessman.

This movie is a tribute to human relations. How they can drive us to achieve spectacular heights. I remember the last time I was so gripped watching a movie was perhaps Prestige or Benjamin Button. Now there's a common thing with all these movies; they feature a sci-fi concept, which just isn't real, or practical, hence the 'fi' part. No need to call it ridiculous. Ridiculous is when a hero randomly decides to have a dance-off with the antagonist in the midst of chaos. But the reason I liked those movies is because for me a movie is good when it entertains you, and great if it moves you, connects with you. That's the reason I like Nolan so much, every time he has made a movie which has made me discuss it with people, about it's implications, interpretations.

Now back to Interstellar, having just seen it a few hours back, I can't write a well versed review, nor am I supposed to I guess, but what I'll say is that not only it looks beautiful, surreal, but it has the potential to shock you or make you cry. The science used in this movie is too hard to me to comment on, I don't know how much of it was artistic liberty and how much was real, but the fact is, it was all done with utmost sincerity. There's a sense of doom throughout the movie, and Hans Zimmer has to be given a lot of credit for that. Ultimately there's a particular scene in the movie which sort of ties things together and yet, scientifically is the farthest from conventional reality ( from which I basically mean Earthly physics-the kind I know about), but yet again it's the direction that makes everything seem real to you, plausible to you because after a certain point you want to believe. The amazing actors, McC, Anne Hathaway, Chastain, Foy...and
Damon
, make everything all the more better. Lastly, it's the Nolan brothers who should be lauded and appreciated for their brilliant work. May they find the inspiration to keep challenging us with the movies they make, and NEVER give in to safe,made-to-please-all cinema.

P.S. - Fuck the holier-than-thou critics. and TARS was awesome !!

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Most beautiful film of 2014, seriously.

Do not go in with pre conceptions of what a Nolan take on sci-fi should be, do not go in expecting an Inception style mindblower actiony tense experience - this is much more graceful, it's rushed at times but it takes its time, it's not big and bold in action but big and bold in ideas. It is definitely a bit too sudden and uneven towards the start but as it goes on it stops...rocking up and down so much. It feels a bit more like an indie because of the more personal scale of things. And I will agree with the critics that the third act is definitely too sentimental for the mind blowingness it tries to do and I think this is the only thing I did not like about the film - I still went with it and enjoyed it. But where this lacks with tone and story, it makes up for it in the experience and technical department.

Technically, it hits perfect marks, from the visuals (if not Nolan's magnum opus, this is IMAX's magnum opus - my jaw dropped at some of the shots and visuals - I really really liked the documentary approach and the IMAX sequences really really fit well - not as a gimmick but an integral part of the film) to the score (although definitely mixed too loud relative to the dialogue at times) which is very different and I really liked it and much more understated than in your face (LOVED the piano bits, those were my favourites) - actually that's what I'd say about the film - it is on the whole very understated, especially the scenes away from Earth.

(Paul Franklin had a really really interesting intro to the showing - essentially an extended PowerPoint version of that featurette on the black hole - going from the initial visualisations to developing the final version seen on screen, with some really cool process videos, and some other bits that they have discovered after completing VFX on the film. The first of the two papers on the black hole - the astrophysics one - goes out on Monday by the way).

Acting wise, McConaughey was really really fantastic with what he was given, Foy was an absolute standout, and so was Irwin as TARS, he was absolutely fantastic - Hathaway, Bentley, Caine were all not going beyond what you'd normally expect from them, and not disappointing. A lot of the post-launch Earth cast (Chastain, Affleck, Grace) did underwhelm a bit though IMO but not too much.
Damon was pretty good actually, a bit too sudden on the transition to his necessary evil but by the end he was great. Once again, understated.
A few more spoilery points under the tag
Docking sequence was fantastic, another great understated bit of the film. Actually that entire bit from the point of Damon appearing is the closest I go to the initial preconceptions of a Nolan thriller space scifi. "You fucking coward" haha :lol:

Definite 2001 homage with the going into the black hole, and it looked fantastic on IMAX. That moment with Cooper reaching out to the Endurance during the trop through the wormhole will be remembered for a long time, that was one stunning image.

I did NOT like how the tesseract and the 5th dimension for Cooper was all based on and around (his love for) Murph. For all it's mindblowing intent it was definitely over the mark on sentimentality. Nolan should've taken a colder approach to that bit IMO.

I'm glad that they kept the ending from the original script though with the Cooper station and Nolan added his poetic touch that he had with Inception and TDK/R to it. While some may think this needs a sequel, this can definitely stand on its own and I'd be interested in seeing Nolan expand the universe and the story (here it's more called for than TDKR) through another medium.

WAY too sudden transition to the rocket launch and space, the sequence worked well but it ended too suddenly and yeah I would've liked to see a bit more of the prep, maybe cutting in during the countdown and him driving away - not an issue that it's not there though, works really well regardless. Just too sudden to them all suited up and flying up at the end of the sequence, especially with the score ending too suddenly.

Also - yes end credits are short and purposefully so, not scrolling but static. Not sure if that's the same on the digital versions too.

Also KIPP!! You poor thing lol. Nice reference to Thorne
Not sure if I got all my thoughts down but anyway. This is not a perfect film, but it's a really really great one. I did hope for it to become my outright favourite of the year but it will have to share that spot with Gone Girl ;P But the main thing is this film is experience-driven and not as much story driven, and as a cinema experience this is absolutely fantastic, this may be one of if not the best ever for me - and if there's one film you have to see in an IMAX theatre and a proper 15/70mm IMAX, it's this. As an experience, this may just be even better than Avatar, may be the best this century.

9/10

Well done to everyone involved and I can't wait to see it again.

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I gave my review earlier this week, but not my score.

So my score for Interstellar is 9.5/10.

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I don't think I'll be able to write a review just yet and I'm crap at writing them anyway.

But I think that first act should have been bit longer and crafted with better precision.

My score is 9.5/10

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Even though I don't have enough posts for this to count, might as well put it on here anyway:
Going to a film in a theater is an experience. Regardless if the film is good or bad, a masterpiece or a failure; when the house lights go down, something magical occurs. The audience is taken to new places, they discover new ideas or feelings, and every few decades or so, a film can shake your inner-being to your core.

Interstellar shook my inner-being to my core. I'm not kidding, exaggerating, or being hyperbolic; this film put me in a state that can only be described as transcendent, religious even. Seeing this in 70mm IMAX only magnified that transcendent experience, and I wish I could describe my joy, love, adoration, delight, jubilation, and utter bliss that Interstellar brought to me.

I'll try.

Simultaneously combining Spielbergian warmth with Kubrickian opaque mystery; Christopher Nolan's magnum opus astonishingly tells a story of intimate love and connection set against a backdrop of vast discovery and uncertainty. Never losing sight of constant themes that interweave throughout, the film tells a story of potent beauty and understated clarity, culminating in a work that never lets go of its big heart and its wild ambition.

All of the performances are uniformly spectacular, especially from Matthew McConaughey, Mackenzie Foy, and Anne Hathaway. McConaughey in particular brings his finest performance yet, unleashing a sensational amount of emotion that is necessary for establishing the film's infinite core. The scenes with him and Foy are beautiful, sublime, and simply stupendous; mainly because of the underlying layers that widen in retrospect. Anne Hathaway quietly stuns, with a prime example being a monologue on love that had me quietly weep to myself in my seat.

Really, It all comes down to if you respond to the film's emotional core. Sure, I understand some of the criticisms, but I didn't have any of those problems. While everyone is saying its flawed in some way, I actually found it to be kinda flawless. The usual problems that I have with Nolan's work, such as exposition and pacing, are not found here. In many ways, this is Nolan as he's come full circle, coming back from a Superhero trilogy to tell something original again.

The direction by Christopher Nolan is beyond words. The wide-shots, the close-ups, the alien landscapes; the film is visually orgasmic. Trust me, you've never seen stars look so real. Hoyte Van Hoytema's cinematography is Oscar-worthy. Forget Phister, we don't need him anymore. The way the camera flows, combined with the slick editing by Lee Smith, makes up a visual EXPERIENCE that is easily the most visually stunning film EVER made.

Yeah, I went there.

Yet, It's the addition of Hans Zimmer's soundtrack that elevates the film into the stratosphere of modern cinema. Instantly becoming my favorite soundtrack of all time, and definitely one of the finest ever produced; Zimmer's work here is utterly holy and divine. Pairing with the immaculate imagery, the film releases a poetic feeling of tenderness and sterile majesty; highlighting our insignificance in the universe but our determination to overcome our limitations.

The story is the finest aspect of this breathtaking work. A journey of the most mind-blowing and impressive order; Christopher Nolan asks the audience to take a leap of faith to explore love, connection, intimacy, and the lengths we go for not just others, but all of humanity. I feel that many wanted this to be a trippy sci-fi puzzle, and while those elements are certainly present, It's all about a relationship between Father and Daughter. Nolan takes the most ambitious genre, hard science-fiction, and uses it to discuss why we love, and how love will get us further than anything else in our lives. It's wholly satisfying, pure, sweet, and stupendously emotional.

As a stumbled out of a 70mm IMAX screening (which I drove 6 hours for I might add), I was in a daze. An utter daze. I could barely walk straight. All I could think about was who I loved, why I loved them, and how their love has changed me as a human being. I periodically cried throughout the whole film, but it not until a few minutes ago that the film finally hit me. The tears, the feelings, the love; It all poured out in a moment of personal beauty and cathartic wonder. Like I said, I had a religious experience with this film.

At the end of the day, It's up to you if you like a film or not, and in my eyes; Interstellar is the finest cinematic achievement that I have ever seen. Blending humanity with the far outreaches of space, and mixing a sense of connection with an endless void of lost memories; Christopher Nolan's masterpiece might be the finest film ever made in terms of weaving an ambitious tale that doesn't forget about the focus.

Love.

5/5

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I'd give it an 8. Extraordinary effort, but the narrative issues prevent it from reaching the higher plane of Nolan's last 3 films.

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10/10 for me.

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Updated.
All Critics stayed the same.
Top Critics average dropped from 9.7/10 to 9.5/10.

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