Interstellar is the movie event of 2014. It is probably the best science fiction film since Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey in 1968.

In fact, I would describe Interstellar as a cross between last year’s Gravity (starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock) and 2001. It has that kind of look and feel to it.

The film is very long (2 hours 45 minutes), and the story is very elaborate. It’s hard to offer a synopsis without giving too much away, but I’ll try…

First off, I want to say that in order to truly appreciate the story, you need to know something about Einstein’s Relativity and time dilation. It is absolutely central to the entire story! In layman’s terms, if you go near a very massive object with a strong gravitational field, time will slow down for you. This means that relative to your friends and family at home, you will have hardly aged.

In the most severe case of time dilation, when you return home from your trip after a few years, everyone you ever knew will have long been dead and buried! This is not science fiction; it is science fact.

Now for the science fiction aspect of the movie…

The Earth is dying. Dust storms ravage the planet and are killing off all the food crops. As the story begins, the last remaining crop on Earth is corn, and even that won’t last much longer. The world’s population is in eminent threat of starvation.

Matthew McConaughey plays Cooper, a former NASA test pilot who is now a farmer. In fact, farming is regarded as one of the most important careers one can choose and it is strongly encouraged. The world doesn’t need engineers, scientists, or astronauts; it needs a solution to the food problem. NASA doesn’t even exist anymore (the last remnants of NASA are holed up underground working in secret from the government to try to save mankind).

Cooper tries to teach his 10-year-old daughter, Murphy, to embrace science and to shoot for the stars. He is disturbed when he learns that the school board is teaching children that the Apollo moon missions were a massive hoax to force the Soviets to invest in space travel at crippling expense to their economy. Man never did go to the moon.

(As an aside, Cooper’s wife and Murphy’s mother died of brain cancer at a time when technology is no longer available, when something once known as MRI probably would’ve saved her life.)

Recently, Murphy’s bedroom has appeared to be haunted by what she thinks is a ghost. Objects fall off the table and book shelf. Strange symbols appear in dust heaps on the floor. Are these the result of messages sent by aliens? Or perhaps messages sent from the future?

***** SPOILER ALERT *****

The answer is none of these. But what happens in Murphy’s bedroom is crucial to the outcome of the story. And it is absolutely mind-blowing!!!

***** END SPOILER ALERT *****

Fast forward a bit. Cooper is leading a mission to find a habitable planet to save humanity. The spacecraft Endurance is headed toward a newly discovered wormhole near Saturn which will transport it to another galaxy. Unfortunately, the most likely candidate is located near a black hole. When they visit the planet, they lose many, many precious years at home (but only hours for the crew).

Fast forward a bit. An accident on the Endurance threatens to maroon Cooper and Dr. Brand (Anne Hathaway). In a heart-stopping maneuver reminiscent of a harrowing scene from Gravity, Cooper saves the day with brilliant piloting. I guarantee you that this scene will have you sitting on the edge of your seat for what seems like eternity.

With a stellar cast that includes John Lithgow, Michael Caine, Matt Damon, Casey Affleck, and Jessica Chastain, and with Christopher Nolan’s magnificent direction, Interstellar shines like a supernova in the pantheon of cinema. This is hands-down Nolan’s best work, and his previous films (The Dark Knight trilogy; Inception; The Prestige; Memento) were a mighty tough act to follow. If I didn’t know better, I’d swear Nolan was channeling Stanley Kubrick.

There are moments of enormous excitement and action, for example, a shuttlecraft trying to escape a mountain-size ocean swell, or the Endurance trying to free itself from the death grip of a huge black hole. I already mentioned the terrible accident that Cooper recovered from using only his wits. There are also moments of monumental betrayal, of unforgiveable lies. And moments of love and sorrow. Underlying the entire film is a profound story of love and faith.

Wormholes, black holes, event horizons, gravitational waves, multiple dimensions, tesseracts, O’Neill cylinders. If these things excite you (and they should!), you’ve got to see this film. Buckle up, it’s one helluva ride!!!

10/10.