MOVIE REVIEW: "INTERSTELLAR" (2014)

“INTERSTELLAR” (2014) MOVIE REVIEW

After the inaugural press screening a couple of mornings ago, you could witness a flurry of interest by newshounds, all too eager to pounce.

Has it dawn upon anyone that this futuristic sci-fi film INTERSTELLAR is going to out-perform any box-office expectations in Asia and most parts of the world?

The name CHRISTOPHER NOLAN still sells, much to the chagrin of his competitors who have been waiting for an opportune moment to have him slide from the pedestal.

It appears that the wondrous special effects and thunderous rumblings on the IMAX screen have to do with the wailing roar. Maybe.

You will be amazed that, suddenly, everyone is a professional guru telling you how the film should be made.

The plot could be secondary. Or could it?

INTERSTELLAR is a wake-up call for those who never bothered about the ravages of time and piling up damage caused by global warming ,until it’s too late.

Taking everything for granted, what would really happen in the near future if the world is devoid of food. water. anything? Bleak, right?

This is the sedate life that we often take for granted.

The PLOT exemplifies Cooper the lead character (Matthew McConaughey) as a former NASA test pilot and engineer-turned-corn farmer. He now enjoys a simple rural life tending to his harvest.

The members of his happy family comprise of his 10-year-old daughter Murphy (Mackenzie Foy), 15-year-old son Tom (Timothee Chalamet) and father-in-law Donald (John Lithgow).

STORYLINE

“INTERSTELLAR” is an arresting film that is highly speculative, yet with a fair amount of reality jolt in regard to scientific accuracy.

It has been scientifically proven that, in the near future, the earth will no longer be able to sustain humanity at the rate it is going.

Dust storms will scour the land and mankind will be regressed to become an agrarian society.

 Four astronauts — former Air Force pilot played by Matthew McConaughey and scientists Anne Hathaway, Wes Bentley and David Gyasi — are selected to travel to a wormhole near Saturn.

The idea is to go through the wormhole and hopefully find another planet capable of sustaining human life.

NASA is a secret organization led by Michael Caine a “gravity expert”.

But the voyage may keep McConaughey away from Earth for untold years, which will break his daughter’s Murphy’s heart (she’s played as a child by Mackenzie Foy and as an adult by Jessica Chastain).

Murphy swears never to forgive her father for choosing mankind over her.

While in space, Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) the pilot and fellow astronauts, Dr. Amelia Brand (Anne Hathaway) and 2 other scientists realize that time is not on their side.

 One slip in space could mean collective years deducted back on Earth.

Their loved ones could die from either hunger, old age or breathing too much dust  into the lungs.

At all costs, these astronauts must ensure that mankind stays afloat.

But what’s in-store for everyone faced with in this precarious situation?

FOOTNOTES:

Mother Earth is fast running out of food resources, so a team of explorers (Captained by Matthew McConaughey ) ventures the unknown in human history.

They are taking the giant leap to infinity to discover whether mankind can provide a haven among the stars.

This is also a heart-breaking film where  you get to watch actor MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY crying buckets especially in moments when he interacts with his family from outer space to Earth.

MATTHEW McCONAUGHEY is destined for an OSCAR mention for not checking on his emotions and flows of tears.

Touching story, no doubt, with equally stunning visuals.

“INTERSTELLAR” in closing, is both haunting and heartbreaking, told with a tenderness that keeps the audience gripped to its finale.

RATING: 4 out of 5

Local Distributor: WARNER BROS PICTURES MALAYSIA.

“LES MISERABLES 2012″ Movie Review. LOVE EMPOWERS EVERYTHING.

“LES MISERABLES (2012)” PRESS PREVIEW

 (A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE)

This CHRISTMAS, go watch LES MISERABLES the MUSICAL MOVIE.

It is a striking film with a haunting score that will tug at your heartstrings.

 Oscar-winning director TOM HOOPER (“The King’s Speech”) leads his cast of stars to perform the songs “live” on-camera instead of having them lip-synch to pre-recorded tracks.

Set against the backdrop of 19th-century France, LES MISERABLES takes us through a heart-wrenching parable of angst, forgiveness and redemption, in a world shackled by injustice and the lack of compassion.

HUGH JACKMAN plays ex-prisoner Jean Valjean, hunted for decades by the ruthless policeman Javert (RUSSELL CROWE) after he breaks parole. When Valjean agrees to care for factory worker Fantine’s (ANNE HATTAWAY) young daughter, Cosette, their lives change forever.

This movie is a fitting tribute on the subject of the timeless resilience of the human spirit.

Yuletide season maybe, but go feel, watch and cry your heart out with the film’s characters, all in the spirit of love.

Love is universal, among other things.

Hope gears you up but it is love that keeps you going.

If you dare stand up in the spirit of  love and fight for whatever you believe in,

Then you dare dream,

Because in eventuality, love empowers everything.

But only if you believe.

Feel the  emotional anguish by the character Fantine as she sings:

“I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living

I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving
Then I was young and unafraid
And dreams were made and used and wasted

There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung, no wine untasted …”

There is grandeur in its scope and scale that will make you sit up.

 LES MISERABLES is a musical that’s both stylish and gritty, with rousing performances from an all star ensemble cast under director Tom Hooper’s relentless direction. Be mesmerized by the exuberant and biting performances of HUGH JACKMAN and ANNE HATHAWAY.

At 2 hour-and-38-minute long, it’s a beautiful and inspiring movie that will linger on your mind long after you leave the cinema, a true musical that must be seen more than once.

Don’t miss it!

To all my readers, a MERRY CHRISTMAS 2012!

“THE DARK KNIGHT RISES” Movie Review. Behold the Dark Forces in this Terse, Tense and Chilly Thriller.

“THE DARK KNIGHT RISES” PRESS PREVIEW

Stretching for almost 3 hours long, there must be a helluva lot going for the DARK KNIGHT.

For sure.

There’s every reason for its succint long-windedness.

With this long-awaited actioner from ace director CHRISTOPHER NOLAN, our helmsman draws the drapes to let the light in, to assure us that there are no holds barred, no shortage of surprises, dark secrets are strewn like red herrings to lure us straight into the plot.

With him you’d have to trust his creation, see it, feel it.

So hop in!

“THE DARK KNIGHT” has finally arrived in grand fanfare, a resounding gong to peel the layers  of mounting suspense off the Pandora’s box.

It’s saving the best for last, so be braced to expect the unexpected.

Here’s a triumphant cinematic experience for your eyes, ears and heart that will capture audiences of all sizes.

Charming and chilling, this top-notch thriller boasts strong performances from an awesome all star cast, notably CHRISTIAN BALE, MICHAEL CAINE, TOM HARDY, JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT, ANNE HATHAWAY and MARION COTILLARD.

No one likes spoilers, so here’s a quick tread on the plot line:

Eight years have rolled by since the disappearance of superhero BATMAN.

He is now BRUCE WAYNE, living as a recluse, hobbling  around in his mansion, mourning for a lost love.

Gone forever, is his fearless hero persona.

BRUCE has taken the blame for the death of district attorney HARVEY DENT.

Meanwhile, everything is going wrong in Gotham City.

It is crushing under the weight of the anti-crime Dent act.

In time, a crafty female cat burglar appears, with a mysterious agenda.

Far more dangerous is the emergence of a dangerous rogue called BANE, a masked terrorist.

BRUCE is therefore forced to return as BATMAN to save the masses.

But given the hapless physical state he is now, can he ever be a sparring match for BANE?

 Behold action galore via kidnappings, colossal explosions, shootings, death and mass destruction. The film’s villain, Bane, is monstrously muscled, is ghastly sadistic, adorning a grotesque mask that is enough to send shivers down one’s spine.

The cinematography, visual effects and production design are way over the top.

Let’s pay homage to this third and final installment of the Batman saga.

At curtain call, take a bow.

Lights out, the legend ends.

And the act is over.