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Interstellar

I’m actually pretty unhappy with this movie, despite the relatively positive critical and popular response it has received. The beginning is strong and fascinating. The middle is aggravating and stupid. The end is interesting, but far from satisfying. Director Christopher Nolan has delivered a production solid enough to be remembered for years to come, but he and his co-writer brother, Jonathan, constructed a story with an unmanageable amount of unpolished concepts – even for a three-hour movie. This is frustrating sci-fi, which reminds me of Robert Zemekis’ “Contact” and Steven Spielberg’s “A.I.”

Matthew McConaughey continues his hot-streak in picking ambitious material to work with, but the overall quality of this project is problematic. The actors do what they can with the material, but many of their characters make choices which baffle me.

Still, the visuals are engaging through smart, high-end cinematography capturing brilliant design work and flawless special effects. Also, I can’t wait to own Hans Zimmer’s pipe-organ-filled score, which sounds like a callback to Philip Glass’ “Koyanniqatsi” score. There’s nothing forgettable about “Interstellar,” but I am still bothered by how broken-on-arrival this film feels through its clumsy story.

Nightcrawler

This story is about the triumph of one sociopath in a dog-eat-dog world. He has the awkward personality of a strange outsider, and insistently sticks his nose into the lives of others, stealing their business tactics. He may look like a maladjusted loser, but he’s a rare breed, methodically adapting to an ugly world in order to have power in it.

Jake Gyllenhaal puts more into this character than I would have ever expected. His frail figure, oily hair and gigantic unblinking eyes are so unsettling. His character becomes a paparazzi-like accident and crime videographer in Los Angeles, with no emotional response when approaching a gruesome scene with his camera. When socializing with others, he makes lengthy speeches, as though he’s been rehearsing them for a long time. This is an anti-hero that works without winning any of our empathy. His ability to succeed in the profession he’s assumed is simply fascinating, given how alien he seems.

“Nightcrawler” is Dan Gilroy’s directorial debut, and as usual, the Gilroy brothers have much more to give when they get around to their passion projects. He is the brother of Tony Gilroy, who made the excellent “Michael Clayton” some years back, before they worked together on the decent, yet pointless “The Bourne Legacy.” Here, Gilroy has a cynical, yet interesting – though sometimes heavy-handed commentary on a modern business world that encourages unconscionable actions.

Big Hero 6

While ambitious concepts are plentiful at the movies right now, I have to stop and acknowledge the pleasure to be found in the simplicity of a family movie that works. Disney’s latest is a delight. I had a very good time with the story of a boy and a robot assembling a team of heroes in a futuristic Japan-like version of San Francisco (It’s like a happy version of “Blade Runner”!)

Loosely based on a Marvel comic, the movie is a very child-appropriate action comedy with a wonderful, candy-colored palette and C.G.I. animation, filled with lively characters. The good voice acting is an important contribution as well.

As always, don’t be late. The opening short is not to be missed.

Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)

Alejandro González Iñárritu’s new movie is a zany, dark comic drama about the crisis of a movie star trying to find a prestigious comeback in the spotlight of esteemed Broadway theater. He is played by none other than Michael Keaton – and with this movie’s brand of meta-humor, his character is best known as the guy who “used to be Birdman.”

As chaos plagues his production, he drifts in and out of reality as a shadow version of himself resembling the superhero he once played – tries to instill a sense of delusional confidence.

Behind all the madness of the content, there is an engaging method that makes it all worthwhile. The bulk of it is featured in TWO TAKES. The camera drifts in and out of rooms, buildings and even implies time-transitions without cuts. Every actor remembers their lines and hits their marks, reminding us of the urgency in theater. This is one of the year’s best movies.

Bennett Duckworth is a film fanatic who lives in Louisville and goes to see a movie in the theater at least once a week. He has kept a movie review blog since September of 2011 with the mission of writing about every new release he sees, as well as new trends in filmmaking and classic films he loves. You can read more of his reviews at www.bennettduckworth.blogspot.com.