Movie of the Week: Interstellar

I loved this movie. Was it really three hours long? There wasn't one moment when I felt it was dragging.

OK, here's the blurb from IMDB. I'm going to avoid plot spoilers.
In the near future, Earth has been devastated by drought and famine, causing a scarcity in food and extreme changes in climate. When humanity is facing extinction, a mysterious rip in the space-time continuum is discovered, giving mankind the opportunity to widen its lifespan. A group of explorers must travel beyond our solar system in search of a planet that can sustain life. The crew of the Endurance are required to think bigger and go further than any human in history as they embark on an interstellar voyage into the unknown. Coop, the pilot of the Endurance, must decide between seeing his children again and the future of the human race.

The first, perhaps 45 minutes of this movie established just how damaged earth has become and sets up the strong realtionship between (widowed) Coop (Matthew McConaughey) and his chaildren, particularly his daughter, Murphy. It is also extremely effective at showing dustbowl earth. When Coop - the last man on the planet who has actual experience of a space mission - is dragooned into flying the desperate mission the wrench away from his family is particularly affecting.

There's been a lot of talk about the science behind Interstaellar and i'll leave it up to those far better qualified than me to judge it against sound scientific principles, but as far as I can gather it has tried to use science and extrapolate from what we know. It uses time dialtion to particularly good effect as a plot device. It certainly has verisimilitude, though when it gets to the last sequence - a representation of five dimensional space on the cinema screen it does get a bit 2001, but all is explained.

Just about the only thing I didn't like was the volume of the background music which obscured some of the dialogue - a beef I often have with movies. I didn't dislike the score, just the volume it was mixed at. There's really no excuse for  intrusive incidental music.

Meanwhile on t'other blog...

A roundup of books I love if you want any suggestions for gifts or for holiday reading ideas:
http://jaceybedford.wordpress.com/2014/11/17/order-books-for-the-holidays

My guest interview on Diabolical Plots:
http://jaceybedford.wordpress.com/2014/11/16/guest-interview-on-diabolical-plots/

Writerly musings on the three letter word. (S. E. X.)
http://jaceybedford.wordpress.com/2014/11/13/the-three-letter-word/

Gust post on Book View Cafe:
http://jaceybedford.wordpress.com/2014/11/06/guest-post-on-book-view-cafe/

Movie of the Week: The Maze Runner

I not only forgot to blog this, but when I was sitting here desperately trying to remember which movie I'd forgotten to blog I couldn't bring it to mind. I guess that tells you as much as you need to know. It's not terrible, but altogether i found it a bit underwhelming.

IMDB says: Thomas wakes up in an elevator, remembering nothing but his own name. He emerges into a world of about 60 teen boys who have learned to survive in a completely enclosed environment, subsisting on their own agriculture and supplies. A new boy arrives every 30 days. The original group has been in "The Glade" for two years, trying to find a way to escape through the Maze that surrounds their living space. They have begun to give up hope. Then a comatose girl arrives with a strange note, and their world begins to change.

Okay, I admit there's some fast-paced action, i.e. a fair amount of running and fighting. Dylan O'Brien is completely forgettable as Thomas, but that's probably down to my advanced age and thinking most teen/twenties actors in Hollywood (male and female) look like they came out of the same mould. (Is it just me?) There's an interesting twist at the end, but Hunger Games is isn't.