Christopher Nolan is a name that commands a cult. He is undoubtedly the most celebrated director of the present era. With only blockbusters to his credit, he is numero uno when it comes to entertainment.
Well, this article is about looking beyond the fandom and entertainment that Nolan embodies. Is he really the best in the business? Or like many of his followers voice, is he the amalgamation of a complete director?
Is Nolan really the best and most complete filmmaker we ever had? My answer is no. I would like to describe Nolan as a commercial director; yeah, the person who poured complex quantum physics through Interstellar has to be a filmmaker for the masses! Be it a story about a superhero or an astronaut, he always entertains us in the most satisfying way possible. But when we take the list of the greatest legends of his trade, this simply isn’t enough.
He lacks the freshness of Steven Spielberg or the philosophy of Stanley Kubrick. This man innovates in technology but recurs in storytelling. He hides behind nonlinear narratives and heavyweight dialogues. Without an extra eye, we notice all these weak points as his strengths. That’s how moviegoers have come to embrace Nolan as God.
Nolan, in my opinion, makes a ‘mass movie’ (colloquial term for commercial films) the way that we appreciate it – as a piece of art. There is no denying that he is the same magician who shot the iconic scene in Inception without the helping hand of a computer. But, Kubrick did the same in the 1960s. Interestingly, Nolan is praised for the wrong reasons.
Nolan will never be a complete filmmaker the way Spielberg is. He never touched anything other than high-concept super-structured dramas or scientifically driven tales. Maybe this is because he entered the industry with a complete notion of what he will make and stuck to that.
Keeping this aside, my question is how can somebody be called the perfect one until they prove their excellence in all areas? We could confidently point out numerous stars glowing behind Nolan’s spotlight, if we lend an eye. Doesn’t Jonathan Nolan, his brother and consistent script writing companion deserve the same kind of love Christopher Nolan receives, atleast after the well received Westworld?
Moviegoers should be more democratic in sharing their love, keeping their admiration aside. Having said that, I sincerely hope that with age on his side, Nolan himself becomes the next torch bearer.