With his highly anticipated new film Interstellar opening on Thursday, it’s easy to be confident that Christopher Nolan has delivered us a cinematic marvel. A quick look at his track record shows that his level of quality makes him one of the best filmmakers of our time. He pushes the boundaries of technology, limiting the use of digital trickery and insisting on getting everything “in shot”. He shoots on 35mm and 70mm – was the first filmmaker to incorporate IMAX footage into a feature length film (rather than just blowing it up digitally and cheaply for the format) – and redefined the modern superhero film. Cutting his best films down to a top five was a near impossible task, but here we go – our top five favourite Nolan films:
5. Batman Begins (2005)
Modern blockbuster cinema was changed forever in 2005 when Christopher Nolan was hired to reboot the Batman series. The resulting film, Batman Begins, showed us the origin of Batman, which had never been shown on the big screen before. Since 2005, franchise reboots have been the norm and most blockbuster films have tried to imitate Nolan’s gritty style. Given all of this, it’s easy to forget that Batman Begins is just a bloody good film that launched once of the most successful trilogies of all time. – Alex King
4. The Prestige (2006)
Visually beautiful both in settings and costumes and an absolute mind-trip. Can you keep up with the magicians?? – Carina Nilma
3. The Dark Knight (2008)
This film not only ranks as one of the most successful films of all time, one of the most critically acclaimed of all time and one of the greatest “Superhero” movies of all time – but it’s also an important one. Putting aside the late Heath Ledger’s Oscar Winning performance as The Joker, this was the film that changed the way we experienced films in IMAX. It was the first film to incorporate the IMAX camera into the shot, with 28 minutes of footage shot exclusively for the format. Nolan has followed this with 72 minutes in Rises and now Interstellar, it means that seeing the film in IMAX is the only way to experience the film as it was intended. Other films have followed the trend, though Nolan is one of the few filmmakers who shows he truly understands the format and from the opening shots of The Dark Knight, right until the end, it made it one of the most cinematically immersive experiences ever put on film. Oh and as a film, you really don’t get much better than that do you? – Larry Heath
2. Inception (2010)
It was a tight toss up between Inception and The Dark Knight. But Inception really blew my mind when I first saw it. Not because I found it too complex or confusing to understand, but because of how unique the story was and how incredibly well Nolan pulled it off. Some of the techniques he used to capture shots were nothing short of amazing. It was like nothing I had ever seen before – Nolan is a master of writing profound stories. – Daniel Bolt
It blew my mind! It was so refreshing to have something so new, complex and visually amazing at a time when there wasn’t much in the cinemas besides remakes. – Amy Nancarrow
This film was all about taking control of your dreams in an effort to take control of your life. Win or lose, it’s one hell of a ride. – Meredith McLean
1. Memento (2000)
Before his budget and popularity managed to eclipse his talent for neat screen-writing, Nolan managed to wow audiences with a wonderful and unique puzzle of a film. Like all the best films, Memento practically demands a second viewing to properly unpack, yet even without the stylistic flourish Nolan employs here (the disparate chronologies displayed by colour vs b/w footage), the film itself is a masterfully directed and exciting story of identity and the thin grasp we really have over it. Plus, Guy Pearce’s performance casts a well crafted and tightly performed spell over us- we’re never quite sure just how much power he has over us, but the ride is never boring. – Andrew McDonald
A very intelligent take on the twisted narrative, with a great ending! – Penny Spirou
One of the best non-linear narrative films that I’ve ever seen and executed so well! Had me guessing right to the end. – Jessica Shields
Interstellar is out this Thursday in cinemas everywhere. Including in IMAX of course! Only the IMAX at the Melbourne Museum and in Darling Harbour, Sydney will be projecting it in 70mm IMAX frame, making these the only two theatres in Australia where you can experience the film as it was intended! A full list of international 70mm IMAX cinemas can be found HERE.
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