7.5/10

Christopher Nolan writes and directs perhaps his most ambitious film to date. With our time on Earth coming to an end, a team of explorers undertakes the most important mission in human history; traveling beyond this galaxy to discover whether mankind has a future among the stars. The film stars Matthew Mchonaghey and Anne Hathaway among the best cast of actors in a film this year. The film is a 2 hour and 45 minute epic that opens up the thought process on anything you have ever thought about when it comes to space travel. I personally enjoyed the movie……well, the first two hours of it. The film tackles every negative aspect about space travel from the theory of relativity and aging, to the vast temperature changes in different planets. Before i get to what bothered me about the final 45 minutes of the film, i will tell you about the things i thought were done well. First of all, the cinematography is bar none the absolute best that i have seen this year. The wide shots of the planets compared to a very small ship make the audience feel small in their problems even if they are facing extinction. Nolan has a way of shooting where every small morcel of color plays an even bigger part in the overall presentation of an eye popping shot. This was evident in his 2008 film “Inception”, as he bent the way the human mind accepts a film. The sound editing is so crippling and heart pounding that i found myself getting lost in the characters struggles, and saw myself in the ship. There were many times when i had to remind myself that i was just a viewer in a movie theater watching these men and women with no guarantee they will ever return home. The score is a beautiful suspense builder, even if it is a bit repetitive at times. I also loved the realistic look at a bleak future Earth. A lot of films go over the top with gimmick products and imagery for future scenes, but not “Interstellar”. It’s explained some of the programs and institutions retired because of the current state of Earth and it’s believable because some of our own agencies are facing these problems in real life. Meaningless Spoiler – It was pretty funny to see Major League Baseball still being played but in a little league ballpark. It’s that kind of shock humor that points this film in the right direction. The acting is also top notch. Mchonaghey is definitely in the prime of his acting career after “Dallas Buyers Club” and the TV smash hit “True Detective”. There is no stopping this guy right now, and this film kept his acting charms present while adding that family man we knew and loved with earlier films in his catalog. Hathaway bounces well off of him as the two have remarkable chemistry especially when dealing with the conflict of two planets to visit and only enough fuel for one. The movie also features Jessica Chastain, Wes Bentley, Topher Grace, John Lithgow, Michael Caine, Casey Affleck, and a surprise cameo that i will not ruin for you the reader. The acting is definitely there even if there are plenty of roll your eyes scenes with some of the dialogue. Some of the cheesiness felt more like those late 90’s- early 2000’s space films like “Armageddon” or “The Core” when it came to the lines that just weren’t needed. The first two hours does everything i listed well, and it’s during that time that the film’s pacing is remarkable considering how long the run time is. So what goes wrong in the last 45 minutes? IT’S TERRIBLE. Not only does the film completely go back on a lot of the rules they established with time comparisons to Earth time, but there are so many confusing layers to a story that already has us barely hanging on. The movie takes on a goofy kind of tone breaking all of the rules set by previous scenes that were done better and explained well to catch us up on the Earth and the backstories to what got it to this point. I am not going to spoil a lot, but there was no age transformation on the faces of our main characters, but there was on other members of the crew. How is this possible? It’s a huge age gap too because there is one scene where they spend 23 years (Earth Time) on a planet, yet Mchonaghey and Hathaway still look as young as they did when they started this mission. Another thing i despised was a robot character who follows the crew on this mission. I am sure i will be alone here, but i felt this character was so meaningless in the plot and ruined so much of the tension building scenes early on with humor one liners, or bouncing jokes off of Mchonaghey. It just wasn’t needed, and felt more of a distraction to me than anything else. I saw an ending in the final twenty minutes that had me completely scratching my head. One thing i wondered throughout this whole movie was why none of the other planets were mentioned in the movie. In real life, it’s been established that Mars is livable and would be the next best option if we ever had to leave Earth. Considering it’s next door to Earth, i didn’t understand why that wasn’t the first option as opposed to a wormhole that is literally years away. Overall, i enjoyed the film and i can’t say that i hated it, but there is too much wrong in the final act of the movie for me to politely ignore it. Some people will see it and think it’s genius, but that is reflective of the two groups of people who will either really love this movie or really hate it. If i graded the first two hours, the film would be a 9/10 for me, but that is how bad the final act drags this movie down for me. If i were watching it again on DVD, i would stop right before the surprise cameo that happens. After that, it’s all down hill. My final thoughts are very weird because i do recommend this film. I think it’s a beautiful piece of cinema history that shouldn’t be missed for the experience it is. However, i recommend you see it in IMAX or XD so you can enjoy the best of many technical aspects from film in 2014. This film should have a couple Oscars coming to it just from that alone. There is a chance you will hate this movie, and i do apologize. But i don’t think anyone will be upset by the gorgeous spectacle in front of your eyes. The film is good, but can’t compare to Nolan’s best like “Inception”, “The Dark Knight”, or “The Prestige”. “Interstellar” gives us the best in what has made Christopher Nolan one of the most demanded directors today. Even it’s intellectual goals exceeds it’s reach, “Interstellar” is a lot like it’s director; one of a kind.