https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0634240/
Nolan is one of Hollywood’s most famous directors, with his movies grossing approximately 5 billion dollars at the box office, making him one of our time’s most important movie directors of his generation. His movies are ones that I hold very dearly, with instant classics such as Interstellar, The Dark Knight, and Inception.
However, a hidden pattern could be seen throughout Nolan’s movies, a pattern that is extremely interesting. Particularly, if you narrow this down to 5 of his 13 movies: Memento, Inception, The Prestige, Interstellar, and most recently Tenet. In all 5 of those movies, time is almost an important character within these works of art.
Nolan’s fascination with time isn’t a new concept, he has made it very obvious, even saying that :
I’m fascinated by the notion that we all feel the passage of time to be unfair to us, and yet, we are all ageing at exactly the same rate.
https://www.fortressofsolitude.co.za/understanding-christopher-nolans-obsession-with-time/
In every movie Nolan approaches the concept of time differently, thus I’ll be looking at how Nolan interacted with Time differently in 3 of his movies –
Inception
https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/inception/2/
This award-winning movie is known for its complexity, as all Nolan movies are, with characters essentially entering dreams within dreams. However, as characters enter a new layer time passes differently, it slows down – a couple of seconds in the first layer translates to 3 hours in the 3rd layer. The characters are in a fight against time to complete their heist, a heist into Cillian Murphy’s memory. Here time is the antagonist of the story, as time is the biggest enemy for the protagonist, Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio).
Intersteller
Once you’re a parent, you’re the ghost of your children’s future.
https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/interstellar
This line from Cooper, portrayed by Matthew McCounghay, sticks with me every time I watch this movie. Especially since the movie takes this line so literally, as Cooper guides his daughter, like a ghost, from another dimension. Furthermore, the next time Cooper sees his daughter after this line she is on her deathbed while he is still a middle-aged man. Time made him a ghost for his daughter, but it also allowed him to see his daughter one more time. This shift happened due to time dilation, because Cooper was in proximity of a Black Hole, time sped up for him, so what was a few moments for him was 60 years for those back on Earth, again showing how Nolan uses the intricacies of time within his narratives.
Tenet
This movie is the summation of Nolan’s work with time. It is a movie I have watched 5 times and I am yet to fully understand it, it spurred hundreds of Youtube videos that attempt to explain, and yet I am still not 100% able to grasp the mechanics within it. This movie is built on the premise that “you have a future in the past”, and that time goes both ways not only one. It is truly a mind-numbing experience, however, Nolan’s logic throughout it is consistent and infalliable.
We all experience time, a concept that is a factor in every decision we make and every issue we face. Nolan took this concept and made it the beating heart of multiple beautiful works of art.
Questions:
Do you see time as a hindrance in your life or as more of an opportunity?
What is your favorite Chris Nolan movie and why?
Christopher Nolan is my favorite director, do you have one? If so who and why?
Links Used:
https://www.fortressofsolitude.co.za/understanding-christopher-nolans-obsession-with-time/
Great read! I liked how you were able to effectively summarize the movies and explain how the concept of time plays a major role in each movie. I also really like Christopher Nolan’s work and always find the time to appreciate and rewatch his films, especially Inception. I am glad to see the recent increase in appreciation for his older work, with Interstellar seeing a rise in popularity. Good work Yahia.
I loved reading this, Yahia! I think time is a very important factor of a good movie, which explains the fame of Nolan and his movies. I really like when directors or filmmakers are creative with the way they use time in their movies, and not only focus on the storyline. In fact, your blog post made me excited to binge watch Nolan’s movies!
Amazing work Yahia! A superb read. As a fellow diehard fan of Cristopher Nolan Films I can say with confidence that he is undoubtedly one of the most talented and influential filmmakers of our time, and his fascination with the concept of time is something that sets his work apart from other directors.
To answer you second question, my favorite Christopher Nolan movie is Inception. The idea of entering someone’s dreams and manipulating their subconscious is a fascinating concept that was executed brilliantly. An absolute classic if you ask me.
Now if were to choose another talented director, it would definitely be W
Amazing work, Yahia! It’s a superb read. As a fellow diehard fan of Christopher Nolan films, I can say with confidence that he is undoubtedly one of the most talented and influential filmmakers of our time. His fascination with the concept of time is something that sets his work apart from other directors.
To answer your second question, my favorite Christopher Nolan movie is Inception. The idea of entering someone’s dreams and manipulating their subconscious is a fascinating concept that was executed brilliantly. It’s an absolute classic if you ask me.
Now, if I were to choose another talented director, it would definitely be Wes Craven. Wes Craven is an iconic horror film director known for his creative storytelling and unique visual style. His films, such as A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream, are classics for sure. I remember binging his movies with friends and family when I was a kid, and that led me to becoming a massive fan of the genre. His contribution to the horror genre has been immense, and his films continue to inspire and terrify audiences today.
i like movies that play with time as a concept because they really make you pay attention to understand whats going on – synechdoche, new york and greta gerwig’s little women come to mind when talking about this sort of fluidity of time. i think time is an opportunity – we only have so much time on this planet – but our daily lives are so quotidian that we end up wasting a lot of it.
i haven’t really seen any christopher nolan movies because sci-fi is just not my genre of choice. off the top of my head, i’d say i’m a fan of hitchcock and ingmar bergman but i don’t have a favorite – i go off of vibes and genres more than directors when watching films.
What an interesting topic, Yahia! Loved reading this!!
Its very fascinating to see how directors play around with time and use it to portray different to portray different events like flashbacks, flashforwards, or sometimes complete reversals of event sequence. It is essential to make sure that the use of time as a “character” is done correctly to ensure that there is no difficulty in interpretation and understanding of the movie. I can imagine that it would take a lot of creativity and thought to perfect that, but that probably is one of the factors that sets apart these directors from others. I haven’t seen many of Christopher Nolan’s movies, but I do remember watching Interstellar, and its till date one of my favorite movies!
he is amazing
Thank you for this exciting blog Yahia!! The relationship most individuals have with time is nuanced. In this day and age, time is a valuable commodity. However, those experiencing feelings like grief may also feel as though time is a heavy burden. Time, in my opinion, is an opportunity, and Nolan’s films demonstrate this. These films examine time’s influence and get you to consider the worth of your time.
As of right now, Interstellar is my favorite Christopher Nolan film because it is the only one I have watched. Nolan’s movies are at the top of the list of movies I want to watch, especially Inception. But I’ve been holding off because I wanted to see Satoshi Kon’s Paprika first, which inspired several themes and scenes in Inception.
I’ve been enjoying Satoshi Kon’s films recently. I find his directing style to be particularly intriguing when it comes to animation. His work fascinatingly investigates the human psyche. He blurs the line between what is real and what is fake. He explores the human experience through the medium of animation without being constrained by live-action movies’ limitations. His films do a great job of confusing and disorienting the viewer, which creates a thought-provoking experience.
I really enjoyed reading this blog post! I have heard a lot of people talk about the movie Interstellar, but I never watched it. I do not really dive deeply into the movies I watch, and I tend to watch whatever is popular at the time. This blog post encouraged me to look into Chris Nolan’s work and think deeply about the meaning behind the movies I watch.
This was a fun read, Yahia! I always find the concept of time very fascinating and confusing. To me, time can both be good or bad. In some situations, it seems like there is not enough time, like with deadlines. On the other hand, sometimes time is what gets you through a difficult period. I do not have a particular favorite director, but I would like to mention Greta Gerwig who is quite incredible. She directed Lady Bird (2017) and Little Woman (2019) which are both amazing in their dialogue and focus on characters. She is also directing Barbie, which will come out later this year. Anyways, your blog post has convinced to finally watch some of Chris Nolan’s movies (many of which were already on my list).
I am not really one for movies. The last movie I watched may have been all the way back in 2017 or 2018. I prefer books (and sometimes TV series as well); thus, I cannot speak much about the quality of movies. However, I did watch Inception and, from what I remember, I did find it enjoyable.
When it comes to time, I do find time as neither a hindrance nor an opportunity. It is simply something that exists and I just have to keep up with it. For me, I find that if you are able to live with no regrets, time has very little effect on you.