Interstellar (2014)

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General		Extras
Category	Science Fiction	None
Rating
Year Of Production	2014
Running Time	162:08
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Christopher Nolan
Studio Distributor	Roadshow Home Entertainment	Starring	Matthew McConaughey Timothee Chalamet Mackenzie Foy John Lithgow Michael Caine Matt Damon Ellen Burstyn Anne Hathaway
Case	?
RPI	?	Music	Hans Zimmer

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 English Descriptive Audio Dolby Digital 2.0
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	2.35:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	2.35:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English for the Hearing Impaired Greek	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

     I love Sci-fi and Interstellar is one of the best I have seen in recent years. The story starts quite opaque and you are not sure what is going on as the state of the world is slowly revealed. As it begins you feel it could be set in the world of today, however it is soon revealed that all is not well, despite the seemingly normal farm life and fields of corn waving in the wind. We are introduced to the main character, Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) who is now a farmer but before some catastrophic event in the past was an engineer and pilot. He lives in a rural area, growing corn and being frustrated with the world, especially the lack of opportunity for his talented son, Tom (Timothee Chalamet) and daughter, Murph (Mackenzie Foy). They live with Cooper's father-in-law, Donald (John Lithgow). One day, after a run in with his children's school, Cooper's daughter tells him that she believes there is a ghost in her room, trying to give her messages. He tells her to investigate scientifically rather than thinking something supernatural is at play. Books are randomly pushed from the shelves and then one day as she and her father watch, dust settles in the room in a pattern seemingly due to gravitational forces. They eventually work out that the pattern is actually co-ordinates somewhere near where they live. Cooper follows the trail accompanied by Murph and they discover a secret government installation in the wilds. I feel that any more information would spoil what is a marvellous story which twists and turns and covers space travel, time relativity, black holes, wormholes and more.

     Other parts are played by Michael Caine, Matt Damon, Ellen Burstyn and Anne Hathaway but to explain their characters would spoil the story. This film is a little like 2001: A Space Odyssey but in reverse, this film becomes clearer as it goes on rather than more opaque. To my mind, this is a better film than that one which I realise is considered by many to be a classic of the genre. The director here is Christopher Nolan based on his brother Jonathan's screenplay, and what a marvellous job is done by both of them. This film is fascinating, thought provoking but also very entertaining despite its long running time. I was riveted throughout the nearly 3 hours of the film. It is wonderfully shot by Hoyte Van Hoytema who is now shooting the new James Bond film, Spectre. There are some very inventive sequences which do not rely overly on special effects but tell the story regardless. The acting is marvellous throughout from a fine cast. Another real strength of this film is that the plot is based on real theoretical science rather than being totally fictional which lends a quality of believability to this story. It avoids sentimentality and provides an emotional, heroic and adventurous ride. The soundtrack by Hans Zimmer is marvellous adding significantly to the tense atmosphere of the film.

     A wonderful science fiction epic. Highly recommended.

Video

     This video transfer is very good for a DVD but I am sure the Blu-ray version would really reveal the full visual majesty of this film. It is 2.35:1, 16x9 enhanced which is the original theatrical ratio. It is certainly nicely sharp for DVD with excellent colour, however the shadow detail is a little lacking at times. No significant artefacts were present.

     There are subtitles available in English for the Hearing Impaired and Greek. The English ones are clear and easy to read.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     Generally, this is an excellent soundtrack for DVD, just being let down by dialogue being a little low in the mix. Technically it is Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack in the original English. There is also an English Audio Descriptive track available. The music sounds great on this DVD although I am sure a lossless soundtrack would be awesome. The surround speakers come to life in many scenes such as the dust storms and during the big waves and other things. The subwoofer also supports the dust storms, launches and the music.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

Menu

    The menu features music.

    The US edition seems to be exactly the same. Buy local. The Blu-ray editions globally contain a lot of extras.

    The video quality is very good.

    The audio quality is very good.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall