Film Review: Interstellar

‪ 

Interstellar. Rated M (science fiction themes and infrequent coarse language). 169 minutes. Directed by Christopher Nolan. Screenplay by Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan

Verdict: In space nothing is as it seems.

There are a number of massive holes in the Nolan brothers’ extraordinary labour of love, and they are (not in any particular order) wormholes, black holes and plot holes. But none of Interstellar’s flaws (of which its long running time is one) come close to ruining the effectiveness of this magnificent, entirely immersive cinematic experience.

Earth is almost uninhabitable, and NASA’s scientists believe the only way to ensure the human race doesn’t become extinct is to resettle on another planet. Previous astronauts have failed to return from searching for likely candidates, so the job of travelling through the wormhole to distant galaxies falls to Cooper (Matthew McConaughey), Amelia (Anne Hathaway), Doyle (Wes Bentley) and Romilly (David Gyasi). What they discover will forever change the way time, space and the possibilities for our future are comprehended.

Nolan (The DarkKnight Rises, Inception, The Dark Knight) cements his reputation as one of the most imaginative directors at work in film today. Together with cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema and frequent collaborator, Production Designer Nathan Crowley, Nolan creates sequences of often jaw-dropping wonder.

The performances from Nolan’s deeply committed ensemble are excellent, with McConaughey in particular delivering yet another superb performance of immense emotional and psychological range.

Kip Thorne’s theories about astrophysics play out here as a multitude of theories about the time/space continuum on the edges of, and within, our solar system, but Interstellar’s genuine emotional clout involves the value of family. And as the dazzling visuals begin to fade from memory, it is the scenes between Cooper and his daughter Murph (Mackenzie Foy, Jessica Chastain and Ellen Burstyn share the role) that make the important and lasting impressions.

This review was commissioned by the West Australian Newspaper Group.

Film Review: Magic Mike

Magic Mike. Rated MA 15+ (strong nudity, sexual references, coarse language and drug use). 110 minutes. Directed by Steven Soderbergh. Screenplay by Reid Carolin.        

Verdict: A beefcake showcase that slowly reveals itself to be far more than it might, at first glance, seem.

While it’s certainly no The Full Monty (1997), in which an unlikely group of down-and-outers fight poverty with their striptease act, Magic Mike has a good deal going for it. At first glance, it’s an autobiographically-inspired showcase for the skills of the indefatigable Channing Tatum (21 Jump Street, Dear John, The Vow), who started his career as a stripper. But with Carolin’s finely-balanced screenplay and the watchful and carefully-considered eye of Soderbergh (Contagion, Traffic, Erin Brockovich), Magic Mike gradually begins to delve into the dark and dangerously addictive side of ‘showbusiness’ – self-delusion, narcissism and a rampantly destructive drug-fuelled subculture.