As a modern day Dust Bowl threatens to starve and suffocate the human race, an ex-fighter pilot, first-rate engineer, and discontented farmer (Matthew McConaughey) stumbles upon and is swiftly commissioned to lead a deadly, top secret NASA mission that aims to journey through a wormhole in search of a new home for the species. Christopher Nolan's Interstellar plays as intriguing science fiction and a palpable family drama for roughly half its running time before succumbing to constant and inane scientific conjecture, egregiously overt references to 2001, and its sheer length which could have easily been pared down. McConaughey is strong, Anne Hathaway is mercifully dialed down, and several late arriving big named cameos serve merely as distractions.
** 1/2 out of ****
** 1/2 out of ****
