American Psycho has Patrick Bateman. The Silence of the Lambs has Hannibal Lector. Now, Nightcrawler welcomes Lou Bloom, the newest entry in Hollywood's memorable movie psychopaths.
Jake Gyllenhaal expertly portrays Bloom, a shady Los Angeles inhabitant desperate for work. Upon his commute home one night, Bloom passes a devastating wreck on the freeway and is transfixed by the swarm of cameramen desperate to get a good shot for the following morning's news broadcast. When he discovers that he has an eye for graphic stories like this, Lou becomes a nightcrawler who, listening to the calls of a police radio, creeps the nocturnal underbelly of the city in search of attention-grabbing violence to sell to a TV news director named Nina (Rene Russo). Right off the bat, there are two things that instantly make Nightcrawler unforgettable. The first is Gyllenhaal's unflinching, Oscar-worthy performance. It's been said that he lost nearly thirty pounds for the role (most of it his humanity), and it physically shows. His eyes bugging out and rarely blinking, Gyllenhaal is at his best as a more than socially awkward man dangerously absorbed in his work. Bloom is much like the film's Hannibal Lector on the basis that he understands the psychology of his colleagues, but exists and operates in an entirely different, dark realm from them. Making him the protagonist does a number on the audience by forcing them to ask, when does extreme dedication cross the line into criminal activity? The other classic criteria that Nightcrawler offers is its smart social commentary on the state of contemporary television news. It makes a point of stating that crime and tragedy are the only topics being covered anymore, and how catering to that audience craving can easily keep a person like Lou employed. Lou has excellent job security because crime never stops, and he gains leverage from that point. There's not a lot more to Nightcrawler, but what it does offer is played so well that it makes for one seriously entertaining dark comedy, and one of my favorite movies in a while. I give Nightcrawler four stars.
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11/9/2014 0 Comments Interstellar: A Space OddityHeavily inspired by 1968's 2001: A Space Odyssey, Christopher Nolan's Interstellar often attempts to be a space epic for the ages. And does it succeed? Sometimes.
The film stars Oscar winner Matthew McConaughey (Dallas Buyers Club) as Cooper, a former NASA pilot-turned-farmer when the world's food supply is put in danger by a sudden dust wave. Think of the "Dust Bowl" described in Of Mice and Men times a hundred. Where did the dust come from? Who knows, it's just here, and it's not going away. Instead, it's killing off all of our crops, and corn, our last resource, is soon to go next. So, Cooper is recruited for a secret mission by NASA to travel through a wormhole in space to another galaxy and find a safer world for humanity to inhabit. How does NASA expect to transport the rest of the planet to another one, if the mission even works? Again, you got me. That happens several times throughout the movie, so if plot holes get to you, this film won't be a favorite of yours. But if you look at the film for the sheer spectacle of it all, it'll completely floor you. There are multiple shots of deep space - particularly one in which the ship Endurance passes Saturn - that are absolutely breathtaking. Having directed enthralling action scenes throughout his Dark Knight trilogy, Nolan is one to refer to the use of set pieces before computer effects, and Interstellar is no exception. Even the set design of the Endurance harkens back to the look of the original Alien, a sign of where Interstellar's inspirations lie. The acting is also something to relish. Anne Hathaway shines as Amelia, the determined daughter of the NASA professor in charge of the mission, though the real bright spot is the chemistry between Cooper and his daughter, Murph (played as a child by The Conjuring's Mackenzie Foy, and later as an adult by Zero Dark Thirty's Jessica Chastain). McConaughey captures the charm of the all-American farmer, and both of the actors portraying Murph bring a different side to the character; Foy acts as Cooper's motivation to take on the desperate mission, and Chastain later takes on a mission of her own. But the film isn't perfect. As stated earlier, the plot, while sporting a more than intriguing setup, has its fair share of holes. The last third is when the film shifts in direction, wanting to go for a touching Spielberg ending but doing so at the expense of the logic that the rest of the film is dead set on following. While the ending will most likely become the topic of spoiler-filled controversy for weeks to come, I don't think its presence is entirely unjust; sure, it would have made more sense in another film, but to its credit, it is very entertaining nonetheless, and certainly unexpected. The result reflects Interstellar as a whole: you don't always understand it, but it's hard to find a scene you don't enjoy. Though his ambition sometimes exceeds his grasp, you can't fault Nolan for trying to craft something spectacular. I give Interstellar three and a half stars. |
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