Genre Essay: Interstellar

Interstellar
 

 

 

Christopher Nolan's Interstellar is a 2014 Blockbuster movie of the sci-fi genre. It follows a team of people who are on a journey to find out whether mankind has a future among the stars. We can see from the trailer that there are many conventions of the sci-fi genre through the mise en scene and language used.

I believe that the film also includes elements of drama and thriller, so would be better classified as a hybrid genre. This is further confirmed when we consider the director; Christopher Nolan, who is well known for making Hollywood Blockbuster movies, such as Inception and The Dark Knight Rises, so he does not only work on sci-fi films. Despite the typically sci-fi epic score, and spaceship settings, it is clear that there are more naturalistic elements to Interstellar, such as the scenes that are filmed in offices and houses.

We can use Propp's stock characters within this trailer, with the ideology that the main character is the hero; he is a father figure to two teens, and also the fact that we follow him on the journey signifies that he plays a big part in what is about to happen, and he could be about to either save or completely fail to save earth as we know it. Because of this, the rest of humanity act as heroines, but his own personal heroine is his daughter. We know this because they are often shot together, using close ups and the shot reverse shot technique, so that we get a further insight to the close relationship that they have. Quite typically of the genre, there is a challenge that needs to be overcome, or else people are going to suffer. A line of dialogue from the mentor figure (Michael Caine) says 'we must think not as individuals, but as a species' which connotes the fact that the human race are relying heavily on those facing the challenge.

The descriptive approach to the trailer includes the setting and dialogue. It is mainly set in space or on a spaceship which is typical of the genre. We can also hear the language used does not always make clear sense to the audience, however trust that it is realistic to the genre, and for the situation. The tone of the genre is tense and somewhat realistically scary. It creates a large amount of suspense for the audience, and includes many enigma codes, with questionable statements such as 'we must confront the reality that nothing in our service system can help us' and 'now you need to tell me what your plan is to save the world'. The main binary opposition here would be mankind vs the end of the world. A more functional approach includes the message that time is running out, and the ideology that there is nothing left to help us, and no amount of 21^st century technology can fix that, and that life somewhere other than on earth is the last hope.

The equilibrium sees the main character being informed that something is wrong and this is followed by further disruption, and the idea that something serious is about to happen. The attempt to repair is the main character and a team of people looking for potential places for mankind to live within the near future, and the reinstatement of equilibrium is not revealed to us in the trailer, leaving the audience feeling enticed and wanting to know what will become of his attempt to save humankind from the mess they have caused for themselves.

Because of the audience positioning, we feel closer to the main character, and his attempt to put things right again. We follow him on his journey and because of this the narration is restricted. This is another convention of not only sci-fi, but also drama; following one or a couple of characters whilst they struggle to get themselves and others back to safety.

Overall, I think Interstellar is typical of the sci-fi genre more than any other, however does definitely have strong elements of drama and thriller movies too. We can see this through the generic and narrative codes, and functional and descriptive approaches to the trailer.