Interstellar is a science-fiction epic released back in 2014. One thing that grabbed my attention the most about this movie was the tremendous amount of hype surrounding it. Warner Bros had so much faith in this movie, before it was release, that the sold the rights to the “Friday the 13th” and “South Park” franchises. I expected a movie nothing less than amazing. I’d seen reviews before and they gave Interstellar critical acclaim so I had faith. Also, I’m a huge fan of Nolan’s Batman trilogy, which again adds to the hype.

In the near future, Earth has been devastated by drought and famine, causing a scarcity in food and extreme changes in climate. When humanity is facing extinction, a mysterious rip in the space-time continuum is discovered, giving mankind the opportunity to widen its lifespan.

The plot stays, for the most-part, straightforward. If you’re a science aficionado, you’ll understand the third act better than I did on the first viewing. If you’re not, then your brain might metaphorically explode, like mine did. Otherwise, the story grabs you and holds you for its almost 3 hour runtime.

Matthew McConaughey, Ellen Burstyn, Mackenzie Foy, David Oyelowo, Michael Caine, Anne Hathaway and a host of others round out this mammoth a-list ensemble cast. McConaughey plays the main protagonist and, in particular, gives an outstanding emotional performance. Ranging from fear to hope, happiness to the deepest of sadness. It’s no wonder he’s an academy award winner. MacKenzie Foy, playing McConaughey’s daughter, gives a strong performance too. I’m not usually one for seeing child actors but Foy hits the nail on the head in her scenes with McConaughey. Michael Caine and Anne Hathaway too play father and daughter. Of course, they too put on a fantastic performance, especially Caine during the third act.

“This is the first film I have made where the actual experience of the film is paramount to the audience. You would think that’s the case with Batman movies but it’s not; they’re more dependent on the reaction of characters on screen. Interstellar is different. It harkens back to the direct experience films of 2001, where you’re not just experiencing it through the characters, you are lost in it.”

The quote above is from an interview Christopher Nolan had with Entertainment Weekly before Interstellar came out in cinemas everywhere. His name is enough to give you high faith in his work, yet this quote adds something special that really adds to Interstellar. The actual experience of the film is paramount, not just the characters. I’m a huge fan of the Nolan Dark Knight trilogy, especially The Dark Knight, but Interstellar is something completely unique in terms of film. When the aspect ratio changes to that 70mm IMAX format, you know it’s going to be something, and it definitely is. Wide-shots of a house in the middle of a massive corn field with the moon as it’s backdrop to close ups of a spacecraft looking over the Earth, it’s beautiful. The total IMAX res footage hits 66 minutes. 66 minutes of just breath-taking camera work that anyone can admire. I believe Interstellar holds the record for most IMAX footage used in a single movie, as of writing this review.

The visual effects were created first so that digital projectors could be used to display them behind the actors. This gave them a better tool to use rather than just have them acting against a green screen. The Ranger, Endurance and Lander spacecraft were all created using a miniature effect, this makes it practical rather than running it all through computer generated methods, Nolan went for the practical approach so he could literally mount a camera to the side of a spacecraft for certain shots. This really pays off in the movie, again it’s beautiful. One thing I also love is the use of location. A glacier in Iceland was a main location used and I partly thought it could be complete CGI while watching the movie, however seeing landscape pictures proved me definitely wrong! Nolan really captures everything I love about film and science-fiction in Interstellar.

Composer Hans Zimmer, who scored Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy and Inception, returns for another Nolan movie to put his magic behind the shots. Zimmer’s score added to the mix of Interstellar adds the perfect sounds to exact moments. We go from strings one minute to the silence of space in the next shot, it’s that in which keeps the mix fresh and polarising. The mix overall is grand. The roars of engines to the blustering sound of dust storms give complete contrast and push Interstellar up to the next level.

If you’re a fan of Christopher Nolan, Sci-Fi in general or any of the actors and you haven’t seen this yet, I urge you to pick up the blu-ray (if you have a blu-ray player, if you don’t then get one then buy the blu-ray). I give Interstellar a solid 10/10.