Sci-fi film “Interstellar” is dazzling, lengthy entertainment

Despite an inept performance by the projectionists at Galaxy cinema in Carson City Thursday night, director Christopher Nolan’s gargantuan movie “Interstellar” came off as a daring, costly ($175 million) travel through the future with Matthew McConaughey as Cooper, a widowed former NASA astronaut pilot now a farmer amid dust storm and winds in a dystopian America.

He is joined by his daughter, 10-year-old Murph (Mackenzie Foy). They receive messages in the dirt on the floor urging Cooper and Murph to a hidden NASA installation amid the cornfields. There they meet Professor Brand (Micheal Caine) who describes the finding of a “worm hole” in space that may lead to an habitatable world for Earth’s largely agrarian millions.

Brand’s daughter Amelia (Anne Hathaway) joins Cooper as they prepare to rocket to the worm hole. Murph is distraught that Cooper is leaving her to the dust. She stays with Donald (John Lithgow), Cooper’s father in law.

Amelia and Cooper are joined by mobile computers CASE and TARS and Romilly (David Gyasi) and Doyle (Wes Bentey),fellow scientists.

They journey through the worm hole and wind up in a black hole, where due to the tremendous gravity pull they age at a much slower rate then those back on Earth.

The explorations continue of possible planets, until finally they return to NASA base.

(The story is complex and in fact is largely based on scientific principles.) Cooper finds Murph, now dying of age (Ellen Burstyn) and is reunited.

Murph as gown up is portrayed by Jessica Chastain, Professor Brand’s assistant, who tepees up to clarify things.

The movie runs almost three hours and while some of the dialog is windy the story moves along at a good clip. The cast is excellent (although Hathaway seems there just to be pretty) and loan’s direction is tight and controlled. And the special images such as the black hole are examples of imagination worked well.

This is a splendid achievement by Nolan, who also co-authored the script. Photography is enlightening and the film is being released in 3mm and 70mm formats as well as IMAX.

This is certainly Academy Award stuff and they are showing it at Galaxy in the 35mm format, which Nolan insists is better than the digital versions of films we usually see.

Not to be missed by those who enjoy entertainment with a scientific basis.

Cast

Astronaut Crew

•Matthew McConaughey as Cooper, a widowed astronaut

•Anne Hathaway as Amelia Brand

•David Gyasi as Romilly

•Wes Bentey as Doyle

•Bill Irwin as the voice of TARS

•Josh Stewart as the voice of CASE

Additional Characters

•Jessica Chastain as Murphy, Cooper’s daughter, nicknamed “Murph”

•Mackenzie Foy as Young Murph

•Ellen Burstyn as Old Murph

•Michael Caine as Professor Brand

•Casey Affleck as Tom

•Timothée Chalamet as Young Tom

•John Lithgow as Donald

•Topher Grace as Getty

•David Oyelowo as Principal

* Matt Damon as Dr.Mann

Staff

•Christopher Nolan – director, producer, writer

•Jonathan Nolan – writer

•Emma Thomas – producer

•Lynda Obst – producer

•Hoyte van Hoytema – cinematographer

•Nathan Crowley – production designer

•Mary Zophres – costume designer

•Lee Smith – editor

•Hans Zimmer – music composer

•Paul Franklin – visual effects supervisor

•Kip Thorne – consultant, executive producer•William Devane as NASA official

The Associated Press contributed to this report.