REPOST: Does Interstellar pack the payload to launch Chris Nolan into Oscars orbit?

Christopher Nolan's new sci-fi drama sees Matthew McConaughey's character leaving his family behind for a heroic space voyage to save the world. The article below gauges whether or not the film could launch Nolan's awards season success in 2015.

How am I going to fit into this?' ... Matthew McConaughey in Christopher Nolan's Interstellar  | Image Source: theguardian.com

Might Interstellar be the movie that finally sees Christopher Nolan traverse the vast reaches between popular acclaim and awards season success in 2015? The British film-maker has a hugely impressive track record as a genre film-maker, and before that a purveyor of intriguing indie brainteasers, but has a mere three Oscar nominations spread over two films, Inception and Memento , to his name.

Yet everything about his new space-exploration drama, the latest full-length trailer for which has just hit the web, seems to have tumbled into place just at the right moment. The Academy handed another space film, Gravity, seven prizes this year, and Interstellar's star is Matthew McConaughey who won best actor for Aids drama Dallas Buyers Club. The supporting cast is not too shabby either, with Oscar-winners Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine and Ellen Burstyn joining nominees Jessica Chastain and John Lithgow on the credits list.

Moreover, the Academy seems to have begun a process of transforming its rather crotchety membership into a voter pool that actually reflects the modern world of film. In theory, we should start to see a lot more Wolf of Wall Streets and Django Unchaineds and rather fewer August: Osage Countys among the nominees (certainly if new Academy voter The Stath has anything to do with it). Nolan himself may be partly responsible for the move: it's rumoured that the Academy's decision to leave 2008's The Dark Knight off the year's list for best film lay behind the body's decision to expand the number of nominees from five to 10 in 2010.

The initial teaser trailer for Interstellar hinted at a Spielbergian sense of wonder at the universe, but the new promo suggests that Nolan has his feet grounded firmly on Earth even as he stares into space. There may be shots of distant planets – one icy, one apparently boasting abundant water supplies – but we also see the pain McConaughey's widower engineer must go through before embarking on a mission to find a new home for humanity. His children are left behind, as their father heads through a wormhole in a desperate attempt to find hospitable planets.

The tone is downbeat, bereft of fantasy leanings, and suggests that Interstellar might cleave closer to moon-landing movies such as Apollo 13 than Nolan's usual, flashier, oeuvre, not-to-mention more hopeful all-American future visions such as ET or Close Encounters. "We used to look up at the sky and wonder at our place in the stars, now we just look down and worry about our place in the dirt," says McConaughey. But there's also a determination not to give up on mankind's last chance of a future, embodied in Caine's delivery of lines from Dylan Thomas's defiant and inspiring Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night.

Going on a space mission … Interstellar director Christopher Nolan (left) and Matthew McConaughey at Comic-Con 2014.  | Image Source: theguardian.com

At Comic Con in San Diego last week, Nolan told the audience Interstellar was "about what it is to be human, and what our place is in the universe," adding: "The further that you travel out into the universe, the more you realise it's in [your heart]." Hathaway's astronaut seems to be saying something similar in the trailer: "Maybe we've spent too long trying to figure all this out with theory. Love is the one thing that transcends time and space."


If that all sounds a bit gooey, there are hard science facts (or at least theories) at the centre of the movie, which is based on ideas about wormholes posited by the American theoretical physicist Kip Thorne. Nolan told Comic Con the conversations between film-maker and scientist were "intense" and even admitted: "It actually made my head hurt a bit. I actually said to Kip, 'Well, I don't want to understand this stuff too much because I have to be able to explain it to the audience.'"


If the film-maker succeeds, he might just pull off the most vital and relevant science-fiction movie of all time. That alone should surely be worthy of some long-awaited Oscars recognition.

Samantha Pouls is an amateur filmmaker who dreams of being in a high-calibre field seating next to her idols Christopher Nolan and Steven Spielberg. Read more about her works on this Facebook page.

REPOST: Oscar Nominations: Snubs And Surprises

Scott Mendelson of Forbes weighs in on the major surprises and shocking omissions from the roster of 2014 Academy Award nominees, including the elimination of viable African-American actors from major categories.

Image Source: forbes.com

For the complete list of nominations, go to Oscar.com.

There were a few surprises this morning as the 86th Academy Award nominations were announced, mostly negative ones I’d argue. In the major categories, the Best Supporting Actress category saw two not-entirely expected contenders, with Julia Roberts snagging a nod for the Weinstein Company’s August: Osage County (for what is clearly the leading role) and Sally Hawkins taking a nod for Sony's  Blue Jasmine. Sadly the biggest surprise this morning was the more-or-less complete shut-out of viable African-American nominees in the major acting categories, as well as the complete omission for the Weinstein Company’s The Butler. What was hoped to be a strong year for black-centric cinema frankly didn’t turn out that way.

It wasn’t just Julia Roberts and/or Sally Hawkins sneaking in past Oprah Winfrey. Forest Whitaker and Michael B. Jordan were presumed to have solid shots at a Best Actor nomination for The Butler and Fruitvale Station respectfully, with Idris Elba for Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom being a potential spoiler. But a late surge for Dallas Buyer’s Club as well as understandable affection for Bruce Dern’s turn in Alexander Payne’s Nebraska (Paramount) arguably cost them nominations. Mandelabecame a serious contender, especially when the mixed reviews popped in, and it is represented only for its U2-penned song “Ordinary Love”. So what looked like a possible Best Actor field, if not an overall Oscar playing field, filled with black-centric films is now just a matter of Fox Searchlight’s 12 Years A Slave (10 nominations) representing what was actually a strong year for mainstream black-centric cinema.

The other major “snub”, aside from Tom Hanks not getting a Best Actor nod despite Captain Phillips getting a Best Picture nomination, is arguably the omission of the popular and buzz-worthy Blackfish in the Best Documentary category. The “Sea World is evil” documentary has been a major force in the media since July, so its omission is surprising. Less surprising is the near-complete absence of the Coen Bros.’ Inside Lleywn Davis (CBS Films), which will make due with a Best Sound Editing nomination (which it will probably lose to Gravity) and a Best Cinematography nod. And in terms of nominations that arguably didn’t deserve it, it’s no secret that I’m not a fan of Sony’s American Hustle (10 nominations, including yet another David O’Russell film scoring a nomination in all seven major categories) or The Dallas Buyer’s Club (7 nominations, including Best Picture), so I’ll merely say that almost all parties involved have done better work elsewhere and leave it at that for now. Matthew McConaughy has done a hell of a job tricking the media into thinking he used to be a terrible actor.

But let’s not entirely focus on the negative. Warner Bros.’ Gravity racked up ten nominations, including Best Picture, a slew of technical nods, and a Best Actress nomination for Sandra Bullock. While it has no chance of winning, Disney’s The Lone Ranger got a much-deserved nod in the Special Effects category, which is a win for those who champion high-quality practical effects work along with now-conventional CGI visuals. Lone Survivor received nods only in the sound categories, as well it should. In a somewhat surprising turn, Saving Mr. Banks got shut out save for its score, so thanks for nothing Ms. Streep (who got a Best Actress nod for her supporting turn in August: Osage County). 12 Years A Slave was represented with 10 nominations, including Lupita Nyong’o for Best Supporting Actress, even if she’ll probably lose to Jennifer Lawrence. And Spike Jonze’s Her got a Best Picture nod and a Screenplay nod, the latter of which it may win.

As with every year, it was a mixed bag of deserved nominations (Gravity, 12 Years A Slave for everything), unfair snubs (Stories We Tell for Best Documentary), and frankly undeserved nominations (Jared Leto in Dallas Buyer’s Club). But once again I must acknowledge the all nine of the Best Picture nominees were films that came out no earlier than October. The entire first nine months of cinema, much of it quite good, was completely ignored in favor of what amounts to predestined Oscar nominated films. The first nine months of the year are, outside of special effects and animated categories, basically represented by Woody Allen’s Blue Jasmine and Richard Linklater’s Before Midnight in their respective writing nods and Cate Blanchett and Sally Hawkins’ nods for Blue Jasmine.

There was absolutely no shot for earlier films like Short Term 12, 42, or yes, The Butler that earned strong reviews and had truly passionate followings. Right or wrong, they were all overlooked in favor of films explicitly intended to earn year-end awards acclaim, and further bolstered by an Oscar punditry that treated them as anointed contenders before they were even released.  Ironically, said representation actually happened for two years, 2009 and 2010, the two years we had that straight ten nominees for Best Picture rule, but “outrage” over films like The Blind Side getting in (horrors… a well-reviewed and audience-pleasing smash hit character drama!) led to the current system. We still get more than five nominees, but it merely means a few more slots for predetermined Oscar contenders.

If we want an Oscar race that actually includes the entire year in cinema, that is something that’s going to have to change. Anyway, I’ll talk a little more about this between now and the ceremony, with a Box Office Catch-Up: Oscar Edition in the next few days. Who do you think got snubbed or unfairly nominated? Which justifiable nomination made you happiest?

Samantha Pouls is an amateur filmmaker who dreams of joining the ranks of Oscar winning directors such as Ang Lee, Martin Scorsese, and Francis Ford Coppola. See this Facebook page for more interesting articles on movies and filmmaking.