Christopher Nolan's next: 'Interstellar'

[Ragged Robin]

Originally Posted by -King-

Ok. I'm really looking forward to this movie, but damn... I don't know if I can stand 3 hours of Matthew McConoughay (sp). His voice is annoying as shit. I'm sure women love it, but I can't stand it. Sounds like he's trying to seduce the audience every time he talks.

[keg in kc]

Moon was great.

[Sure-Oz]

Loved moon

[ragedogg69]

Yep. Dealing with a 70mm doesn't look cumbersome at all. Digital is in no way more convenient. /s

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wn4z...ndex=2&list=WL

[ragedogg69]

Yep. Nothing wrong with analog. Those jumped to digital are suckers.

http://uproxx.com/filmdrunk/2014/11/...le-with-70-mm/

[keg in kc]

Got tickets for thursday evening. We'll see what we see.

[ragedogg69]

So from the few non spoiler reviews I have read, it seems it is best summed up as a good movie, but a flawed movie.

[Deberg_1990]

Uh oh......people are complaining about the sound mix. Nolan has been accused of muddled sound mixes before with Inception and Dark Knight Rises.



http://www.slashfilm.com/interstellar-sound-issues/


Christopher Nolan controls every single aspect of his movies from preproduction through publicity. He wants every single thing about his film to be handled just right, from something as important as the IMAX film capture all the way through to who writes about the movie before release. Recently, multiple reports said he personally went to numerous theaters that would be screening his latest film, Interstellar, to double- and triple-check the sound and picture quality. That’s a comforting fact, to know that he’s out there making sure things look and sound great.

Much less comforting is the buzz coming out of those screenings. From the first press screenings through opening night, fans have been complaining about issues with the film’s sound mix. Reports say multiple scenes have the music and sound effects so loud that dialogue is drowned out. This doesn’t seem to be an isolated incident. It’s a complaint that’s been registered all over the US, Europe, and Canada.

Below, we’ll present some of those reactions, some of the stories, and some of the explanations hoping to get to the bottom of these possible Interstellar sound issues.

We’ll start with my personal experience. I saw Interstellar at the TCL Chinese Theater IMAX on opening night, 8 p.m. November 4. It was a sold out show; an employee greeted the crowd by explaining how Nolan himself had been watching every early screening in this very theater to make sure this was the best place to show his full vision for Interstellar. According to the man introducing the screening, IMAX had spent $600,000 to upgrade the theater for the film, including bringing in a brand new film projector just for this movie.

A few days before, my colleagues Peter Sciretta and Russ Fischer saw the movie in the same venue and had complaints about the sound in the theater. So that was one of my points of emphasis when watching the film. From almost the very first scene – a plane sequence – the dialogue is almost completely inaudible under the music and sound effects. In that scene, maybe it was intentional. We’ll let it go. Later, in a scene where Coop (Matthew McConaughey) closes the window to his daughter’s room, his command for her to leave is only recognizable because she does so visually. Once the film gets into space, multiple bits of comic relief with the robot TARS are missed because of the sound. Those are just a few points.

After the movie I spoke to fellow patrons their thoughts. One man, Jeff, a filmmaker, said the sound was a “major issue” and it hurt his enjoyment of the film. Every single other person I spoke with agreed dialogue was hard to hear, but most didn’t find it as distracting. A few who’d even seen the film in this theater weeks prior said the sound was better than it was at their first viewing, but it was still an issue.

To be fair, almost all of these people sat in and around the same middle section of the theater. No one was in the back, in the very front, or very side. Maybe this was just an issue of location. Still, if this was a theater Nolan himself personally checked, that even one person found the mix an issue is a problem.

Here are a few other tweets from people who saw the film at the TCL:

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Uh oh......people are complaining about the sound mix. Nolan has been accused of muddled sound mixes before with Inception and Dark Knight Rises.

The issue isn't with Nolan or the mix or the movie theater sound system. The problem is that many theaters weren't acoustically designed and have issue with bass buildup. Even some of the better Mann's theaters aren't treated properly.

Bass traps are essential when viewing a movie in which the audience expects explosions, loud noise, heavy bass, and so on. Without them, the bass waves, which can be three feet long, will bounce all over the room and cancel out other frequencies.

This is a movie theater problem, not a problem with Nolan's mixes.

[Deberg_1990]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

The issue isn't with Nolan or the mix or the movie theater sound system. The problem is that many theaters weren't acoustically designed and have issue with bass buildup. Even some of the better Mann's theaters aren't treated properly.

Bass traps are essential when viewing a movie in which the audience expects explosions, loud noise, heavy bass, and so on. Without them, the bass waves, which can be three feet long, will bounce all over the room and cancel out other frequencies.

This is a movie theater problem, not a problem with Nolan's mixes.

Interesting. It might be an issue with some of the IMAX theaters?


I remember watching Inception in IMAX and the dialogue being muddled.

Then of course the famous Bane dialogue being muted and hard to understand at times. At least in the original trailer.

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Interesting. It might be an issue with some of the IMAX theaters?

Much like broadcast TV stations and even radio stations, there is no standardized format for sound in a movie theater, so it's highly likely that there are issues. Unless you're seeing a film in a newish theater designed for an excellent experience (Pacific Theater's Arclight, Alamo Draft House, etc.), it'll probably vary from theater to theater.

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

I remember watching Inception in IMAX and the dialogue being muddled.

I remember reading the complaints. I didn't see it in the movie theater but I've never had any issues at home.

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

Then of course the famous Bane dialogue being muted and hard to understand at times. At least in the original trailer.

Again, I didn't see it in the theater but I haven't had any issues at home. That said, I thought it was an odd choice.

[Kiimo]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

The issue isn't with Nolan or the mix or the movie theater sound system. The problem is that many theaters weren't acoustically designed and have issue with bass buildup. Even some of the better Mann's theaters aren't treated properly.

Bass traps are essential when viewing a movie in which the audience expects explosions, loud noise, heavy bass, and so on. Without them, the bass waves, which can be three feet long, will bounce all over the room and cancel out other frequencies.

This is a movie theater problem, not a problem with Nolan's mixes.

Any theaters in LA you'd suggest seeing it at?

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by Kiimosabi

Any theaters in LA you'd suggest seeing it at?

I think Arclight Hollywood is the best cinema experience around. I don't care for the Dome, however. I'm always disappointed at the Chinese Theater (and Mann's 6 in Hollywood & Highland are garbage, IMO).

The big rooms at The Grove are good, as are the big rooms at the Americana but I don't care for the sound or picture in the smaller rooms.

But once again, nothing touches Arclight Hollywood, IMO.

[kysirsoze]

Originally Posted by Kiimosabi

Any theaters in LA you'd suggest seeing it at?

Definitely TCL Chinese Theatre. Nolan himself spent the last month optimizing it.

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by kysirsoze

Definitely TCL Chinese Theatre. Nolan himself spent the last month optimizing it.

What?

It's not a Sound Stage. No one can sit there and make notes expecting them to translate to a WB soundstage, let alone, every other movie theater in the world.