Interstellar is a movie like no other. Unlike many apocalyptic sci-fi films that feature advanced technology as the source of our destruction (ala The Terminator movies), it instead asserts that technology will save us.
Not everyone in Interstellar recognizes the potential of advanced technology. Most dismiss it as a waste of time and resources, and not just old curmudgeons feel this way. Thoughtful, intelligent young characters share this sentiment. This belief gained steam following a world-wide blight that wiped out the vast majority of life on earth—crops and humans.
Farming became paramount while advanced technology was deemed frivolous. Cooper (McConaughey) remains one of the few survivors who still appreciates the need for engineering. He feels like a man lost in time, until he stumbles into the headquarters of NASA (which had been operating in secret due to public disapproval). Here he meets others who realize that a return to our old ways is unsustainable and will ultimately lead to our demise. We need technology to save us. As Michael Caine, playing the brilliant (duh!) Professor Brand, eloquently tells Cooper, "we were never meant to save the world. We were meant to leave it." For a movie that won an Oscar for Best Visual Effects (and deservedly so) the sound stole the show. Hans Zimmer (Dark Knight Trilogy) unleashed a performance that was, quite appropriately, out of this world. Never have I seen a movie elevated so much by its score. The sound literally took my breath away. Forgive me for the next paragraph. I will gush irresponsibly about the magic that is this movie's sound. Skip it if you please. You have your warning.
The music fueled every important scene. In every meaningful moment Zimmer's harmonies captivated watchers' attention in the way of a coach commanding a locker room with a pregame speech. The music elucidated those emotional scenes, particularly ones featuring Cooper and his daughter, in a way that no words or visual ques possibly could. I sat frozen, jaw agape, with tears pouring down my cheeks as the music completely overwhelmed my emotions. The sound penetrated my soul and reverberated through my body, flowing to my appendages, supplying me with life like a heartbeat pumping blood through my veins. The music was truly the life force of movie.
Yes, we all witnessed a visual triumph, a daring creative wonder the likes of which we haven't encountered since Inception. Yes, nearly every actor's performance proved worthy of commendation. McConaughey is on fire. Chastain is blossoming into a star. At this point Michael Cain exudes such knowledge and wisdom by merely appearing on screen that if he were cast as Albert Einstein, people would wonder if the role were beneath him. All this considered, and the sound still towered over everything.
I walked out of the theater believing that I had experienced something unique, something truly special. Interstellar inspires, it awes, and above all it entertains. I cannot ask for more than that.
