Interstellar documents the journey of
the crew of the Lazarus as they journey through space to find a habitable planet
for the human race to live on. After various diseases began destroying crops
all over the world, the Earth was in need of a much larger supply of farmers,
leading men like Cooper, a former astronaut and our main character, to leave
their former professions in order take up farming and increase the food supply.
It is also revealed that, due to some unexplained series of events, the public
opinion of space travel has decreased so immensely that schools have begun to
teach children that the landing of the Apollo 13 was nothing but propaganda
meant to bankrupt Russia. When Cooper’s daughter Murph, named after Murphy’s
Law, discovers an anomaly in her bedroom that provides Cooper with a set of
coordinates, the two end up following them and finding NASA, which went underground
and is continuing its research in secret. From here, Cooper is chosen to lead a
team into space and through a wormhole to another galaxy in search of a new
home for the human race in order to save them from extinction.
Not only was Interstellar’s
use of story, special effects, and sound dynamic, but it was also an homage to
Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: a Space Odyssey.
Interstellar did everything right in
terms of dynamics. Not only was the plot a fresh take on the “find a new home
for the humans” scenario, but it used plot twists and emotionally charged
scenes to its full advantage. This film takes every possible chance to rip out
your heart strings and dance on them in the most satisfying way possible. There
isn’t much to say about the film’s special effects as they are very much the
same quality as the numerous other films out right now. However, that doesn't
make them any less special. The special effects were most impressive when they
were used to create the extremely believable worlds that the crew visited, when
they traveled through the wormhole, and during other key moments in the film,
which I won’t spoil for those reading this post from my blog who may not have
seen the film yet. Lastly, the film is accompanied by an absolutely gorgeous
score, which accents the mood of the film beautifully. In addition to its
stunning musical score, Interstellar
makes great use of non-digetic sounds. The best example being the use of rhythmic,
clock-like tones to subtly remind viewers that Cooper’s crew have only so much
time to spare in any given situation.
Interstellar very clearly took
inspiration from 2001: a Space Odyssey.
First, the film made direct nods to Kubrick’s work by using slow build ups, shots
showcasing the various pieces of spacecraft floating through space (though
without the classical music), and even going so far as to reference the plot of
2001 itself when one of the ship’s
robots, TARS, jokes about killing off the crew, a nod to HAL’s actions in 2001. Second, it also took techniques
that were used in 2001 and used them
much more effectively thank Kubrick did. It used the same slow buildups, but it
spread them out evenly throughout the film as opposed to using them for 90% of
it as 2001 did. More importantly, it
did so without the use of the vomit-inducing, seizure-causing flashes of color
and light that accompanied many of the scenes in 2001. While Kubrick’s long, silent montages are enough to drive one
to complete and utter boredom, Interstellar
spaces these moments out perfectly so that you have time to digest the plot and
appreciate the moment that the slower scenes were building up to.
While I
suspect Interstellar will be met in
much the same way as 2001: a Space
Odyssey was, with some believing it to be a modern classic and with others
dismissing it for its admitted strangeness, I firmly believe that Interstellar will be one of the films my
generation will be remembered for. Personally, I loved this film and would
highly recommend it not only to sci-fi fans, but to movie lovers in general.
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