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Kim Hollis: I would actually say that they are ahead of their Pixar brethren at the moment. I grant that Pixar is under the Disney umbrella, but they have their own distinct releases and everyone recognizes them as such. Since Pixar has shown a bit of vulnerability with Cars 2, Brave and Monsters University, it's given the people over at Disney Animation a chance to shine. I realize some of our staff members have commented here that quality has been lackluster, but that sure isn't evident in either critical reviews (Tangled: 89%, Wreck-It Ralph: 86%, Frozen: 89% and Big Hero 6: 88%) or overall audience reaction (Tangled: $591 million worldwide, Wreck-It Ralph: $471 million worldwide, Frozen: $1.27 billion worldwide, and Big Hero 6: already almost $100 million worldwide). All these recent films have been fun, smart projects that appeal both to kids and the parents who have to sit through the movies. While I'd definitely say that DreamWorks had the better films in 2010 and this year (with How to Train Your Dragon and its sequel), Disney's were more widely accessible.

Kim Hollis: If you've had the opportunity to see Interstellar, where do you think it ranks amongst Christopher Nolan's films?

Matthew Huntley: Funny you should mention that, Kim, because I just e-mailed you my review of it and ended it by saying I think it's Christopher Nolan's very best film, at least as far as a pure movie-going experience is concerned. The dude has talent, that's for sure.

Max Braden: Right away I know I can say it's not his best, simply from a technical storytelling perspective. I thought the first act of Interstellar took too long and then the second act launches too abruptly. I think that epic storytelling is Christopher Nolan's style, but that he's done it with tighter pacing in his other movies. As a concept I'd pick Inception as his most exciting film, and for characters I'd pick either the first or second Batman installments (those were obviously enhanced by actor performances). Man of Steel (which he wrote but didn't direct) and Insomnia (which he directed but didn't write) are both long, drawn out, and weary stories. I'd put Interstellar in the middle. Interstellar's highlights for me are really the characters and their decisions and perhaps the theme, because despite how poorly I reacted to Amelia's baseless "love makes the world go round" philosophy, it was the love between father and daughter and even just the love of exploration that made me enjoy the movie in the end.

Kim Hollis: I think that Interstellar is an interesting but flawed film, which is something you could also have said about The Dark Knight Rises (and while I don't agree so much, others will say about The Dark Knight and Memento). I'm sort of sad to say it but for me, Interstellar is probably the least of Nolan's films as far as quality of entertainment. As much as I admire what he was trying to do, I feel like Nolan overreached. I'd agree with Max that the first act is drawn out too much, which makes the second act feel like it comes on too quickly. And yet if you asked me I'd give Interstellar a mostly positive review. I think the ideas are interesting (I very much appreciate the idea of love as a dimension) and it is obviously absolutely gorgeous to look at. Unfortunately, the reality of the situation is that I saw two movies this weekend and Interstellar wasn't the one I enjoyed the most. I think it's probably telling that I'm a mark for Nolan, but I wasn't really excited to spend three hours in the theater for Interstellar.

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