Interstellar: The IMAX Review [NO SPOILERS]

Want more critique? Read the Interstellar Movie Review HERE (short and snappy – don’t worry).

Interstellar has been released on every platform imaginable (bar 3D), from 4K digital to 35mm film. So is it worth IMAX’s higher ticket price?

10 Reasons You Should Be Even More Excited About Interstellar

In a word – yes.

The visuals from cinematographer Hoyte van Hoytema are stunning and were literally intended for the IMAX experience; Interstellar has the most 70mm IMAX footage of any movie in history.

What is IMAX? A taller image. An IMAX screen is almost as tall as it is wide, and Director Christopher Nolan used film stock specifically for these dimensions in order to experience the movie’s world in an unbeatable fashion. 

A lot of the movie plays out with normal dimensions of a cinema screen, but when the movie flips to IMAX footage you see the black bars disappear from the top and bottom, the image flooding your vision for mind-blowing moments such as the journey through a wormhole and the descent into a black hole. These changes in image size, or ‘aspect ratio’, are rarely noticeable as you become immersed in the storytelling.

Not seen Interstellar? Yes you have. It’s called Inception: 6 Similarities You Can’t Deny

Another element is the sound. Interstellar is full of gut-wrenching audio helping you to experience the writhing of the space shuttle and the scale of the planets, but IMAX also allows you to experience the quiet moments of the movie. The clarity of sound is such that the silent moments floating in space feel as empty as intended, rather than being spoiled by buzz or whirr.

Furthermore, Hans Zimmer’s score must be experienced at IMAX. Offering powerfully fragile melodies in moments of gargantuous action and emotion is an enlightening change from deep, bassy and orchestral scores. The soundtrack is gentle, magnificent and brooding and every minutia of it must be heard.

CLICK HERE for the 5 Unanswered Non-Sciency Questions in Interstellar…

So no 3D like the similarly incredible space-set Gravity? It works. For all the sophistication of Gravity it was at heart a roller-coaster ride; an unbearable and claustrophobic experiment of a movie playing amongst flying debris and safety cords. It was designed and ideal for 3D in the best possible sense.

With Interstellar there must be no gimmicks or novelty and such it is fit for IMAX. Nolan wants us to experience space exploration with the cold hand of reality on our shoulder, rather than with the diverting spectacle of unnatural 3D images. Both movies are different and perfect for their chosen mediums.

What about the Movie itself? Read the Interstellar Movie Review HERE

What did you think of the IMAX? Share your thoughts with us on Twitter @MovieMasticator, or on Our Facebook Page. 

CLICK HERE for the latest on Interstellar…

Not seen the movie? Watch the most recent trailer below…

Interstellar: The Movie Review [NO SPOILERS]

Want an IMAX reaction? Read the IMAX review of Interstellar HERE

Interstellar is unlike any movie experience you will have ever had or will have have for some time.

The scale of the movie’s premise, visuals and story are unmatched even by Christopher Nolan himself.

Inception was ambitious, large and brave, but Interstellar almost makes it look ordinary and bankable.

Interstellar will not be for everyone. Nolan tries his best to condense complex quantum physics into sweet popcorn chunks and essentially succeeds; using character’s drawings and at one point a metaphor about oysters to convey the basic theory required.

10 Reasons You Should Be Even More Excited About Interstellar

But however delicately these points are fed to the viewers it will always alienate some. Not to distinguish between the intelligence of one viewer compared to another, but to distinguish between what one viewer is willing to give over another, as well as what they expect to get.

Interstellar can and will be loved, but only by those who are willing to give to it their time (170 minutes), their concentration and their faith in the credibility of the underlying science, as well as those who are expecting the movie’s depth and complexity.

CLICK HERE for the 5 Unanswered Non-Sciency Questions in Interstellar…

Yes, Nolan has built a diverting, safe and fluffy blockbuster shell for a bogglingly complex premise, dressing up black holes, wormholes and time relativity with gripping thrills and a tender love story, but some viewers can be forgiven for peeking through the facade and being put off by the underlying intricacies – even if they don’t rise to the screen.

Not seen Interstellar? Yes you have. It’s called Inception: 6 Similarities You Can’t Deny

Summary: Interstellar is not easy-going. Do not devote your date night, friday night, whatever night, to it without being aware of what the movie demands. If you throw yourself into it you will reap huge satisfaction. 

Rating: 5 out of 5

What about the IMAX? Read the IMAX review of Interstellar HERE

CLICK HERE for the latest on Interstellar…

What did you think of the movie? Share your thoughts with us on Twitter @MovieMasticator, or on Our Facebook Page. 

Not seen the movie? Watch the most recent trailer below…

Gone Girl (2014)

Gone Girl (2014)

Director: David Fincher (Fight Club, The Social Network)

Starring: Ben Affleck (Argo), Rosamund Pike (Jack Reacher)

Genre: Thriller/Drama

David Fincher is on something of a roll. Zodiac, Benjamin Button, The Social Network, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo…it is a recent resume that the best Directors in the world would die for. Incidentally, death is something Fincher is accustomed to making films about, from the Zodiac Killer to Kevin Spacey’s cold-blooded John Doe in Se7en. 

In Gone Girl, the world’s media believes Nick Dunne, played by Ben Affleck, killed his wife Amy Elliott Dunne, played by Rosamund Pike, on the morning of their 5th anniversary. Nick Dunne is not in the shadows like the Zodiac, or proud of his achievements like John Doe, he is an entirely different beast. He is a regular, quiet guy, who at first doesn’t seem capable of murder. For the first time in a David Fincher film the suspect is the lead character. The audience is asked to spend their time with Nick Dunne, we are challenged to trust him and root for him.

As the media creeps in on him and the pressure begins to mount, Gone Girl takes us on a journey analysing the state of modern social networking, the realities of a loveless marriage, and the lengths one will go to to achieve their desires.

Gone Girl is the technical and visual masterclass you expect from David Fincher. Film after film from under his wing comes dripping with luscious imagery and tension as tight as a cable tie squeezing round your ribs, and this one is no different. At times Gone Girl grips you like no other, like cinema should and can when done properly.

There are other times when you feel as if it is Fincher in third gear. While Gone Girl impresses, it doesn’t demand worship like Zodiac or Se7en. Some of it is just too safe like a Friday night crime series, but it is largely saved by a visceral and shocking performance from Rosamund Pike; portraying emotions and sides to her skill that most wouldn’t have known existed.

Ben Affleck excels in his ambiguous role, teetering on the knife-edge of trustworthiness, schmuck, seediness and rage. The audience’s opinion of his Nick Dunne is slick and changeable, like blood in bathwater.

As book adaptations go, Gillian Flynn has done a good job transferring her hit from page to screen. The right amount is preserved, and the less-necessary plot lines are intelligently omitted. There are weaknesses; the dread of Nick Dunne’s potential incrimination in the case isn’t translated as well on film, and Neil Patrick Harris does his best with a role massively stripped down from being interesting to just being a plot point.

In Gone Girl we might just have the perfect break-up movie. See with your spouse at your peril.

Summary: Fincher has bettered his adaptation of Dragon Tattoo and lengthened his solid streak – but where has the spark gone? Where is that fresh, perverted, genius Fincher that we haven’t seen since Se7en, Zodiac at best?

Rating: 3 out of 5

Share your thoughts with us @MovieMasticator!

Seen Gone Girl and NOT seen Ben Affleck’s reported full frontal? Click here to see that you’re not alone…

And then why not pop over to see the Top 5 Shocking Moments of Nudity in Movies!

Not seen Gone Girl? Read more about the movie on IMDb, or watch the trailer.