By Chris Snellgrove | Published
While this is a very good problem for a director to have, one could argue that Christopher Nolan is a victim of his own success. He has directed many unique and stunning films (including The Black Knight, CreationAnd Oppenheimer) that when he creates a more original picture, it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle of his other blockbusters. The best example is InterstellarNolan’s most overlooked film, which you can now stream on Netflix.
The plot of Interstellar
Interstellar has a much darker plot than other sci-fi offerings on Netflix: it presents a world where humanity is on the verge of extinction, and everyone’s collective survival depends on one brave pilot’s ability to pilot a cutting-edge spaceship through a nearby wormhole. Habitable planets await him in another galaxy, and a ship filled with frozen embryos gives him a chance to potentially save his species. But his journey will ultimately take him across time and space, giving this intrepid pilot a chance to save himself while focusing on saving humanity.
If you’re a big fan of Christopher Nolan’s films, stream Interstellar on Netflix will reveal some familiar faces, including The Black Knight Alumni Michael Caine and Anne Hathaway stand up. They’re joined by other A-list actors, including Matt Damon (no stranger to weird space missions), Jessica Chastain (her Oscar-winning acting), Casey Affleck (the Affleck you don’t do it see in all these memes of exasperation), and Timothée Chalamet (having taken his first steps in space long before playing in Dune). But the best performance comes from lead actor Matthew McConaughey, whose Space Daddy charisma and charm help anchor the film whenever it feels too much like Star Trek.
The success of Interstellar
While Interstellar currently exploring strange new worlds on Netflix, it initially launched to huge box office success. With a budget of $165 million, the film grossed an impressive $743 million. Despite this success, Interstellar never truly became part of our collective culture in the same way that The Black Knight, CreationAnd Oppenheimer did, making it one of those rare successes that we rarely talk about anymore.
However, critics have never stopped talking about Interstellarand Nolan’s ambitious sci-fi effort impressed them long before it went through the streaming wormhole and ended up on Netflix. On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a critical score of 73 percent, with critics generally praising the film for being a visual treat guaranteed to make you think. Impressively, it also has (via the Popcornmeter) an audience rating of 87 percent, making it the rare sci-fi film that has impressed even the most snobbish critics while still being a real audience pleaser .
If nothing else, Interstellar is probably the most beautiful sci-fi movie you watch on Netflix. After all, the film won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. Speaking of awards, he swept many different categories at the prestigious, gender-centric Saturn Awards. Ultimately, Interstellar won six Saturn Awards, including Best Science Fiction Film, Best Writing, Best Music, and Best Special Effects.
It’s not hard to understand why Interstellar has impressed everyone so much… as long as they go into it with an open mind, it’s the kind of movie you show to your Netflix-loving friend who insists he doesn’t really like science- fiction. That’s because the film isn’t just about spaceships and black holes… it’s also about the human condition, including how family bonds are bigger than any cosmic force. As our hero finishes his epic journey, don’t be surprised if you let out the breath you didn’t know you were holding.
INTERSTELLAR REVIEW NOTE
Would you like to share my breathless enjoyment of Interstellar when you stream it on Netflix, or is this the kind of sci-fi opera you’d rather throw into the nearest black hole? You won’t know until you stream it yourself from the edge of your seat. Warning: it can be a little difficult to read the entire credits through tears streaming down your face.
