Following Alfonso Cuaron's Gravity, it was always going to be tough for a while to make an impact when it came to movie scenes set in outer space. Cuaron's effortless-looking depiction of a zero-G, zero-oxygen, zero-sound environment represents the high watermark to which all other space-set films must aspire and, post-Gravity, it's as though we've all forgotten how difficult it is to achieve this level of realism. And yet, in its own quiet way, Interstellar deals with the intricacies of space on film with a similar proficiency. Note the physics involved in Dr Mann's unsuccessful attempt to manually board the Endurance: from Mann's docking to eventual ejection and the shattering of the Endurance, Nolan and his team have crafted something balletic but messy and suffocating. Or witness the Endurance's trip across our solar system to the wormhole, in itself a short, mesmerising star trek reminiscent of the Discovery One's journey in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Had Interstellar been released prior to Gravity, more people would be talking about how well-handled the space-set scenes of Nolan's film are.
Lover of film, writer of words, pretentious beyond belief. Thinks Scorsese and Kubrick are the kings of cinema, but PT Anderson and David Fincher are the dashing young princes. Follow Brogan on twitter if you can take shameless self-promotion: @BroganMorris1
