an epic masterpiece

Rating: 10/10 (12 November 2014)

The much-anticipated Interstellar arrived and immediately created massive explosions, both on film and in the film's response. Many, like myself, found it to be an unprecedented masterpiece. Others have called the film too outlandish or ridiculous, due to its fictitious scientific perspectives.
This, of course, also happened with last year's space thriller Gravity-and please take note, Interstellar is not Gravity. It is undeniable that both are true spectacles to watch, but Interstellar is a much more philosophical and emotional film. It is a surreal journey out of our galaxy and feels vividly alive, all while making you contemplate the realities of humanity and the spectrum of emotions we experience, such as love and how its manner of existence cannot be measured in scientific terms.
That being said, Interstellar is a very scientific film, yet it is one that brilliantly manages to balance out with emotional character development and astounding space cinematography. It can feel stark or it can feel mind-bending, and its transitions are superbly executed. Spectacular cinematography and original storytelling come as no surprise when watching a film directed by Christopher Nolan, best known for Inception and the Dark Knight trilogy. His entire filmography is astounding and highly recommended (by me, of course), so those hyped for the film due to his involvement flocked to the theatre-along with Matthew McConaughey's huge fan-base since what has been labeled the McConaissance. A ridiculous term, yes, but let's be thankful he's gone from bad rom-coms to the dramatic roles he's thrived in, from Mud to Dallas Buyers Club.
The fact of the matter is, as a piece of cinema, Interstellar stands out. It has many odes to 2001: A Space Odyssey and even Star Wars, due to Nolan's love for sci-fi. However, much unlike these films, Interstellar remains grounded outside of alien life. Whether Interstellar dabbles into the supernatural is cause for debate, due to the film's scientific presentation mixed with fiction. This is precisely why Interstellar is an unprecedented experience. It presents real scientific facts and asks tough philosophical questions, yet remains a grippingly lucid sci-fi film.
Discussing Interstellar feels much like presenting someone with a gift and not wanting to give any hints as to what it is. The film's layers are cleverly peeled off and its progression is so beautifully carried out that there is truly nothing like experiencing it and absorbing its concepts and theories after it is over. I suppose I've delayed discussing Interstellar's plot because it is a film in which every plot point is important and imaginative, and giving anything away would feel like giving away a meaningful piece. I will, nevertheless, present you with an introduction and very minor synopsis of the film.
Interstellar follows Cooper, played by McConaughey, living with his father-in-law, son, and daughter, in a desolate Earth filled with extreme dust storms. Homes and human lungs are filled with dust as people struggle to survive with limited resources in a deteriorating, and depleting Earth. Cooper is a farmer who once flew for NASA before the Earth's descent, and his crops-along with crops around the entire globe-are dying due to the earth's excessive drought and dust plagues. Upon making entirely unexpected discoveries, Cooper is faced with making the difficult decision of leaving his family for the exploration of planets sustainable of human life in a galaxy outside of our own. With the spectacular Anne Hathaway at his side, not to mention a sarcastic clunky robot, Interstellar becomes a humorous experience as much as it is intellectually stimulating and incredibly moving. This is a film that simply cannot be missed due to its intricacy, beauty, and manner of evoking a response from all those who experience it.