Nolan defies space, relativity, imagination

In Christopher Nolan’s latest blockbuster, “Interstellar,” Matthew McConaughey is a family man and farmer by the name of Cooper who is a former pilot for NASA. When opportunity knocks in the form of a phenomena, he is beckoned by a now-underground NASA for a heroic mission to find another planet that the human race can inhabit.

With the help of an inside connection of a former colleague, Professor Brand (Michael Caine), Cooper gets the job. He then embarks on the mission, along with Brand’s daughter fittingly named Amelia. What happens next defies space, relativity, and the imagination – but all of this comes full circle to show that family and love for one another can come through any obstacle.

Directed by Nolan (“Memento,” “Inception,” “The Dark Knight” trilogy) he does it again by leaving you on the edge of your seat, keeping you guessing, and leaving you in awe of good film making. His stories are mostly original; even with the Dark Knight trilogy he provided a sense of plausibility without damaging the story. He does the same thing here, proving that he is one of, if not the best, writer/director in Hollywood today.

The script is written by Christopher and Jonathan Nolan. The dialogue is realistic, logical, believable, and fits with the story. The Nolan brothers, as usual, do a good job of keeping the story flowing without ruining or spoiling anything. They write characters with realistic depth to them so the audience can connect. The casting is well done, quickly becoming Nolan’s trademark. With each actor living up to his or her full potential, the actors show good camaraderie and chemistry while looking into the depth of each character to see what drives them.

McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, and Jon Lithgow plus a few other surprises draw you in but it is Sir Michael Caine who steals the show and portrays why he is the veteran.

The cinematography, imagery, and special effects are flawless, flowing well together. There are scenes that are reminiscent of the Apollo missions, deep space scenery that leaves your imagination wondering like a child looking at the stars, along with painful decisions of a loving, single parent doing what is best for his children.

There is also scenery, that while remaining original has a Stanley Kubrick-esque feel, leaving this generation with its own “2001: A Space Odyssey.” But, where most sci-fi or end-of-the-world movies leave you either hopeless or rebuilding, “Interstellar” leaves you hopeful – looking to the future of what not only a person can do to better themselves, but what we as the human race can do to better ourselves by just looking at two simple factors: love and family.

All of these factors are reasons for why I give this movie five stars. Keep it up, Nolan.