ThisIsBigCat’s review published on Letterboxd:
One of my biggest movie-going regrets is not watching Interstellar when it came out in 2014. The film didn't interest me much then, and it became a massive cinematic blindspot for me for the next several years. I only got around to watching it for the first time two years ago. It mostly lived up to the hype and I was mesmerized by the visuals. But deep down, I had this aching regret that I could have witnessed this movie on a massive IMAX screen as Nolan intended. But to celebrate the film's 10th anniversary, there's a theatrical re-release on IMAX. I couldn't pass this opportunity up to have the cinematic experience I desired so much.
Watching Interstellar on IMAX is absolutely a different experience from the small screen. You can appreciate the dazzling visuals at home, but more senses are stimulated on the big screen. The differences are not just the screen size, but the sound too. The vibrations caused by the simmering sound feel like you are in an actual spacecraft, it really adds to the immersion. In general, I walked away with stronger impressions coming out of the theater.
What else can I add to Interstellar? So many people have praised this film to death. I could go on about the visuals, the performances, and Hans Zimmer's score. Nolan recruited theoretical physicist Kip Thorne as a consultant, and thanks to him we get amazing visuals of what wormholes and black holes would theoretically look like. Based on the black hole photograph from 2019, Interstellar nailed how it would look. Oddly enough, it's the rare sci-fi movie that considers relativity, which is great because it led to the excellent "23 years later" scene. But one thing about Interstellar stands out from the rest of Nolan's filmography, and that's emotional resonance. It emphasizes themes that speak to the human spirit and invites audiences to shed some tears.
I wanted to love this movie and praise it as a masterpiece. But there's something that bugs me, and that's the third act. The best way to describe the third act is Nolan trying to implement Spielbergian sentimentality to 2001: A Space Odyssey with mixed results. It emphasizes the power of love as the main thesis of the film. While love is universal and is an easy way to get emotional reactions out of people, the execution came off as hokey to me. For a film that excelled with scientific logic and rigor, it introduces far-fetched ideas like communicating complex scientific data with Morse code transmitted through a wristwatch. Another issue is that it gets carried away with exposition, explaining the situation when it wasn't necessary. I do have one compliment for the third act. It does end on a very cathartic note.
Regardless of my nitpicks, I can perfectly understand why Interstellar is one of Nolan's most beloved films. It's a well-paced sci-fi adventure that synthesizes the spirits of Spielberg and Kubrick. But most importantly, it gives people a reason to feel something.
