It is very difficult for me to be objective about this movie. Is it a 9? No way. Is it a 7? Possibly. The “realization of the conclusion” is a major meltdown/letdown/fizzle/“so that’s all?” kinda moment, but the first 75% of the movie—from archival Dust Bowl clips (courtesy of Ken Burns’ PBS documentary) and gorgeous cinematography and swelling music to the father/daughter love story brought me to tears and goosebumps more than once. I personally love Matthew McConaughey’s Austin drawl and shtick, and in light of his character being a farmin’ engineering astronaut maverick in a tiny town with dreams outsizing his reality, I thought he was perfectly cast. I also love Christopher Nolan’s cinematography, always enjoy Michael Caine’s diction, and any movie that quotes Dylan Thomas’s “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” THREE TIMES is a slam-dunk for me. But Jessica Chastain’s anger was so misplaced, so intolerable, and Anne Hathaway played such a mopey troll that I found myself flinching each and every time either one of their characters spoke. Mackenzie Foy (the daughter, also from The Conjuring and Twilight) was perfection incarnate, let down mostly by forces outside her control, namely, the ending and miscasting of her adult self. But as for lingering effects, I’ve now seen the movie three times, and play five particular soundtrack songs every day as I shower and shave. They are very anthemic, which seems a fitting way to wash off yesterday and tackle today.
