So, the new trailer for Interstellar just hit the interwebs a couple of days ago. This is the same one Nolan debuted at Comic Con. The reaction to it has been surprisingly divisive.
Many are calling it ‘stunning’, ‘breathtaking’, and some even proclaim to be unable to exercise their vocal chords upon viewing it. Others seem to think it’s boring, and doesn’t meet the standards of the trailers of Inception or The Dark Knight.
Marketing is essential. It can make or break a film months before it hits a screen. And while names like Nolan and Mcconaughey are some of the most bankable ones at the moment, I’m sure the studio isn’t going to make do with mere name dropping on what could potentially be the biggest film of the year.
On the face of it, Interstellar doesn’t seem to evoke the same ‘WOW’ factor that the trailers I mentioned above did. To be fair, it doesn’t try to. Interstellar looks to be far more heavily emotionally driven than any of Nolan’s earlier films. At least the marketing campaign seems to suggest so.
And that’s not a bad thing. While the younger audience would probably love to see something along the lines of Nolan’s last few films, Interstellar could mark a new page in the filmography of an auteur filmmaker that has evolved in his sensibilities since he started out, and is not currently tied down by franchise commitments, giving him the opportunity to tell the stories he currently finds relevant to his life thematically.
Nolan’s Batman films were always going to please the fanboy audience first and foremost, and Inception is an idea that came to him when he was 16. The resulting film does have almost that sense of teenage wonder to it. Now in his mid forties, themes like family and fatherhood would be closer to him, and I believe he’s drawn inspiration from that. But of course, that’s pure conjecture.
Over his last 3 films, Nolan has amassed hordes of young fans, and their reaction to Interstellar could prove to be interesting. On the flip side, given the slightly more mature themes of fatherhood here (Inception did explore it as well, but there it was wrapped around a mindboggling plot and breakneck speed progression) Nolan stands to create a whole new set of fans.
Interstellar’s trailers scream 2001: A Space Odyssey and that is great! If we can get a sci-fi film of that level, everyone (The audience, The Studio, and Nolan) can go home extremely happy. In some ways, the trailers seem thematically reminiscent to one of my favourite films, Darren Aronofsky’s The Fountain (a perfect marriage of human drama and sci-fi). I find the prospect of 2001: A Space Odyssey meets The Fountain mouth watering.
November couldn’t get here sooner!