1 Star

"Interstellar" promises to be this year's version of "Gravity," but instead winds up being an over-rated, over-hyped 'Prometheus' type of film.

With a "stellar" cast of Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway and Jessica Chastain, and Christopher Nolan as the writer and director, this film has the public counting the Oscars before it is released. That, by itself, is a red flag.

The story begins some time in the future where Earth looks much like the Dust Bowl of the early 1900′s. Crop blight and eventually starvation of the human species appears to be inevitable. Cooper (McConaughey), raising his two children with the help of his father-in-law (John Lithgow), stumbles upon strange occurrences leading him to the supposedly defunct NASA project. Cooper is convinced that the only way to save the human race is to pilot a space ship, leaving his family for an undetermined amount of time, and find a new world to relocate the inhabitants of Earth.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, time races by and scientists try to find other solutions. The ultimate question is how to weigh the love of your children against the love of all humanity. Cooper must find that balance while fighting insurmountable obstacles in space.

The story sets itself up rather slowly as we learn about Cooper's wife passing away, the personalities of his two children and the uncertainty of the future. Cooper is a very educated and quite a brilliant man, and his daughter, Murph, seems to follow in his footsteps with her spunk and determination as well as her intellect. Their bond is endearing and at the core of the story.

Inexplicable events revolving around gravity occur which catapults the story forward — too far. As the audience is being tutored in Physics 101, and according to my memory of Mr. Brooks' senior physics class, inaccurately so, and questions begin to surface. Black holes, worm holes, and most importantly, aging in space are all key elements of the story. But "love" is the most important element in science. Yes, that's right. You probably don't remember that from your science classes, but it's true. As my eyes are rolling backward, the space adventure continues to go forward. Babbling about written algorithms and statistics to justify characters' decisions results in ridiculous detrimental consequences. The saving grace and humanity in this film comes from the robots who add a touch of humor and interest. Other than that, the characters are flat and undeveloped, leaving the viewer not caring if humanity is lost.

Without giving anything away, there are several instances of inexplicable jumps in the film; as if they edited a very important part that determined the next scene. The final 45 minutes (remember, this is a 2 hour and 49 minute film), attempts to pull it all together. It is a supernova of conclusions and unfortunately, there is no worm hole in which to escape to the world in which I didn't go to see this movie.

McConaughey's performance isn't anything out of this world. He continues to use his southern vernacular and terms of endearment like "Slick," that we have heard in so many of his other films. Lithgow (Donald) and Michael Cain (Professor Brand) have small, but important roles and perform adequately. However, it's rather frustrating when Cain's character is delivering a pivotal line and the musical background becomes the musical foreground, compounded by the gravely and soft voice which inhibits you from hearing it! But the biggest disappointing performance is from Anne Hathaway. She is not convincing as a scientist or as a love-sick woman.

In addition, the lack of a cohesive and believable story and inadequate character development creates a film that drags. The cinematography ranges from interesting to hoaky. The space shots are meant to portray the loneliness and desolation of what it must feel like to be in outer space, but it just lulls you to sleep. The film tries to take on too many aspects of life, introducing too many characters and not giving enough to keep you interested in any of them. I'm still questioning every aspect of Matt Damon's character.

Leaving a film feeling grateful that it's over, but a few bucks poorer, is not a good way to leave. Discussing the film and trying to figure out the missing pieces of the puzzle leaves you even more confused and angry about the inconsistencies and inaccuracies. This science fiction story just spirals out of control into too many dimensions to find a clear path to follow.

I didn't like 'Prometheus' or 'Inception,' but if you did, you might enjoy 'Interstellar.' My recommendation is to stay home or spend your money on films like 'Whiplash.'