Interstellar - Part 8

[Tim_Riggins]

Really? Jesus christ.

 

[DeadPresident]

While I think the movie is good, I'm curious as to what people think was so ambitious about it? The story is good, but nothing mind blowing. It's very well made and crafted, but nothing beyond what we've seen before.

I haven't seen it yet, but I think people like it so much because it combines (some previously done) popular components from other movies with what seems like a compelling story, all wrapped in Nolan's distinctive style. Not breaking any new ground, but probably providing a really appealing spectacle, and from what a lot of users are saying it has quite a bit of heart in it too.

 

[Tim_Riggins]

What's mindblowing? The sheer spectacle of it, the scale, the experience, the ambition of it. If you see this movie and don't get it, then man, I don't know really, I guess we can stop making movies.

It's not a surprise so many high profile directors gushed about it, few directors if any, but Nolan (imo), can pull off a movie like this one.

 

[Motown Marvel]

I haven't seen it yet, but I think people like it so much because it combines (some previously done) popular components from other movies with what seems like a compelling story, all wrapped in Nolan's distinctive style. Not breaking any new ground, but probably providing a really appealing spectacle, and from what a lot of users are saying it has quite a bit of heart in it too.

And I would agree with most of those things, but that doesn't make it ambitious. Ambitious implies that it's reaching beyond the norm, that it is in fact breaking new ground. Which is not the case with this film.

Again, I'm not criticizing the movie. I'm criticizing the critiques.

 

[Tim_Riggins]

Ambitious= reaching beyond the norm? Is that a new definition of the term?

 

[BatLobster]

I think the ambitiousness could be more on the conceptual side. There is some very mind-bending stuff that you're asked to think about in this movie. But then again a lot of science fiction is ambitious conceptually. I just think this movie is another fantastic entry into the canon of science fiction.

Though visually....my god, Gargantua might be one of the most hauntingly beautiful things I've ever seen on a movie screen.

 

[Motown Marvel]

Ambitious= reaching beyond the norm? Is that a new definition of the term?

High aspirations which are difficult to attain. It was a good movie, but didn't feature any aspirations that we haven't seen before in other good films. I'm all for people enjoying this film, but let's not get hyperbolic in the praise.

 

[Tim_Riggins]

If you don't see the movie as anything other than good, we can't agree on whether those of us who loved it are hyperbolic.

 

[redfirebird2008]

High aspirations which are difficult to attain. It was a good movie, but didn't feature any aspirations that we haven't seen before in other good films. I'm all for people enjoying this film, but let's not get hyperbolic in the praise.

People are allowed to get as hyperbolic as they want in either direction. It is their feeling, so they can say what they want.

I haven't seen the movie but Jonah's old script was good (not great). Curious to see how the movie turns out tonight when I see it.

 

[Motown Marvel]

If you don't see the movie as anything other than good, we can't agree on whether those of us who loved it are hyperbolic.

Don't worry, I just realized I went into this expecting reasonable discourse on the Internet....which would be ridiculous.

Carry on....

 

[Donut]

Don't worry, I just realized I went into this expecting reasonable discourse on the Internet....which would be ridiculous.

Carry on....

You gotta see it twice in theaters. Maybe you will get clearer thoughts etc

 

[Tim_Riggins]

@Motown: you don't get it? You say "let's not get hyperbolic", you consider it as hyperbolic because you don't see it the same way, how can we agree? It's simple logic

 

[Motown Marvel]

You gotta see it twice in theaters. Maybe you will get clearer thoughts etc

Really? This film isn't so difficult that it requires a second viewing to grasp it. I saw it. I get it. It's good. But not mind blowing.

 

[bapi]

Act 1 - Spielberg
Act 2 - meh
Act 3 - Kubrick

I'm a huge fan of Nolan but really don't know what to think now. It has some phenomenal moments and Hoytema + Zimmer deserve Oscars (and I'd be ok with a nom for McConaughey) but overall... It's tough. Anyway it's a unique movie and I'll see it tomorrow again. Right now:

8/10

 

[Donut]

Really? This film isn't so difficult that it requires a second viewing to grasp it. I saw it. I get it. It's good. But not mind blowing.

It's not what I think though. Its what people in here seem 2 think

 

[Motown Marvel]

@Motown: you don't get it? You say "let's not get hyperbolic", you consider it as hyperbolic because you don't see it the same way, how can we agree? It's simple logic

I don't expect you to agree. My expectation was for anyone that feels this film is ambitious to explain why they think so.

As an (obvious) example: 2001: A Space Odyssey was an ambitious film. In every way. Interstellar doesn't really feature any stories, concepts, characters, film technique, etc. that we haven't seen in other films before. Yes, most of these things were done very well in Interstellar, which is why I think it was a good movie. But, for me, for something to be ambitious, it would have to be reaching beyond what we've experienced before. And I didn't get that from this film.

 

[Tim_Riggins]

What's ambitious about it is what made for example for me TDKR extremely ambitious, on a lesser level. The scale, the scope, that third act, that ending, the insane spectacle (unless you didn't find to be that impressive), the gorgeous visuals, Zimmer's unexpected score, it's a sum of many things.

 

[Motown Marvel]

What's ambitious about it is what made for example for me TDKR extremely ambitious, on a lesser level. The scale, the scope, that third act, that ending, the insane spectacle (unless you didn't find to be that impressive), the gorgeous visuals, Zimmer's unexpected score, it's a sum of many things.

Again, while I feel the success of the elements you mentioned ranged from okay to good to very good in Interstellar, I feel most those aspects have been done as well, if not better, in a handful of other movies. Which is why I don't get why people are awe struck by how ambitious they feel Interstellar to be.

 

[BatLobster]

Here are a few areas I see it as ambitious in:

-Being the first Hollywood space exploration film to use existing theories and principles of astrophysics to guide the narrative, which grounds an extremely exotic plot in a tactile sense of reality.
-Anytime Nolan tops himself with the amount of 70MM IMAX footage shot, that's ambitious. It's not something any other filmmaker is doing to that extent, and the format absolutely contributed to the feeling of being on the journey.
-The combination of influences...attempting to reconcile the warmth of Spielberg with the chilliness of Kubrick. (Yes this was also attempted in A.I., but it's not something too many films can say they've attempted)
- The willingness to earnestly use science to attempt to discuss the spiritual. It's very Sagan-like in that aspect, and I can only think of Contact as another example of a film that really carried attempted to carry that Sagan spirit. But Interstellar far surpasses Contact IMO.

That's all I can really say without spoiling anything. Though I do think ambition isn't just about being the 'first' to do something (everything under the sun has been done to some extent), but it's about the combination of things you're trying to do and the overall package you're putting it in.

I think the bottom line is that the movie is playing with some BIG emotions and some BIG questions and doing it on the largest scale. That alone makes it ambitious. That's not to say that this alone makes it "good"...how much the overall quality lived up to the ambitions is up to each viewer to decide.

 

[Black Narcissus]

I give this a 7/10.

I was never bored, but the ending just didn't work for me. This will be a bluray buy, but this is far from being my Nolan favorite. You should definitely see it in Imax.

 

[bapi]

Four hours since my screening and I'm still thinking about Interstellar. It's not a perfect movie but maybe it just shouldn't be. I'm ok with that. Can't wait to see it tomorrow again (and this time with my whole family).

 

[Tim_Riggins]

Cannot stop thinking about it, that's the mark of great movies for me, seen it yday & it doesn't get out of my head, I've had a similar feeling before, but never like this. I'm going back on saturday, it's like I need my fix, I need this rush again, this experience.

 

[I SEE SPIDEY]

The response to this film kinda reminds me of Prometheus in some ways. You have the insinuation from some fans that people who didn't like the film "didn't understand it." I ****ing hate that dismissal of other people's opinions of a film. I especially hated it because I thought Prometheus was a crap film and yet you had people insinuating that I was an idiot for holding that opinion. I've said that crap before and it's wrong when I say it and it's wrong when others say it as well.

 

[DACrowe]

Nolan fanboys think the constant worship elevates them to some kind of lofty golden perch high above the rest of the simple-minded rabble.

I am going to posit that the fanboy idolization of Nolan will end with this movie. He is no longer the director of Batman films, and this movie (shockingly) is so anti-blockbuster in its pace and approach that it will turn off a lot of mainstream viewers who liked the whiteknuckled speed of his last three movies, including Inception. Further, the ending is so out of left field (but leaves you thinking more and more even a few days later) that it will piss a lot of people off.

I think Interstellar is a fantastically flawed film that will probably become a sci-fi classic. But now that Nolan is no longer a superhero movie director, the gloves are coming off in fanboy circles. What seemed fresh and revelatory in 2008 is old and antiquated in the minds of many fans (just read this thread) who are ready for the new shininess of Zack Snyder and/or the MCU. The backlash is coming, and this movie will be it, because it is decidedly not like his last three movies and while it works (I think), it is not perfect.

But who knows. In five years or so after Snyder/DCCU are no longer so new, things might swing around. And I suspect a faithful portion of the audience will still be talking about Interstellar then, because there is not much like it in scope made by moviemakers these days. It's out of left field and polarizing. It is going to piss people off.

I cannot wait until it is thus seen by more folks.

 

[Travesty]

The response to this film kinda reminds me of Prometheus in some ways. You have the insinuation from some fans that people who didn't like the film "didn't understand it." I ****ing hate that dismissal of other people's opinions of a film.

Heh, yeah, people say that so much around here.