Monday, December 15, 2014

"Interstellar", Hollywood in hyper-space

Interstellar

It was bound to happen. As technology keeps advancing, the movie industry is eager to show the new available possibilities and tricks on visual effects, introducing them on "the next mind blowing" experience. One that is usually packed within a seriously silly film but announced ad nauseam as the must-see movie. In that sense, 'Interstellar' must be considered a triumph. Is highly impressive, epic and visually bombastic, but is not offending your intelligence. Thanks Christopher Nolan for creating a blockbuster (or better said, the mother of all blockbusters) that doesn't insult you.

It's admirable to have a film willing to reach massive audiences with a product that introduce bits of science, poignant dilemmas about mankind's future and a thought-provoking nod to what we are currently doing with the planet we have inherited. The global crop blight and second Dust Bowl that are Earth's death toll are a suggestive and intriguing way of exposing the consequences of the damage we are inflicting to our planet, wasting its resources and degrading it until becomes uninhabitable. It also has a lot of merit the movie lasts for almost three hours, taking its time to develop, but doesn't become (at least to me) boring.

Having said that, this is a blockbuster. And there are TOO MANY letdowns, weak moments and plot holes to make the overall result satisfactory. To begin with, 'Interstellar' settles its plot in one of the most overused and ridiculous excuses. Again, it's another "chosen one", former NASA pilot Cooper (the now vindicated Matthew McConaughey, funny how trends change everything) who has mankind's future in his (supposedly) experienced hands. Probably more convincing than 'Armaggedon'... but not that far away from it. The moviegoer has to concede quite a lot to believe the whole Professor Brand's (played by the great Michael Caine) hidden plan...

Then, through wormholes, unexplored galaxies and new tempting planets that could be the right one for humans to settle in, there's Hollywood all over the storytelling, highlighting the sentimental, human side of this galactic adventure. But even if you can't argue against the impeccable McConaughey and Jessica Chastain (who plays Murph, Cooper's daughter, essential part of the movie and Earth's salvation) performances, the mixture between bland sentimentalism and bigger-than-ever plot hurts the film. And finally there are some secondary roles that are really underdeveloped, Brand (played by Anne Hathaway) being the most obvious. And although others might help the film keep going (I'm thinking on Matt Damon's role as Dr. Mann) giving 'Interstellar' some action, there are several question marks about what they offer in terms of story development and credibility.   

Entertaining and way more than your average blockbuster. But light years from a masterpiece.

SCORE: 6/10

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