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Nightcrawler(2014)
This is a film which received publicity via a brief picture of Jake Gyllenhaal joining the method actors club with the changed weight loss appearance(i.e. Matthew McCounaughy for Dallas Buyers Club in Oscar winning form and of course Christian Bale before Batman in the Machinist). This is perhaps his best performance to date and very unfortunate that he was not Oscar nominated for it given that his performance had less academy votes against a number of symbolic biopic roles which fit the Oscar criteria.
We start off with Louis Bloom (Gyllenhaal) who instantly indicates that the viewer should not be routing for him with the first deed he executes without any remorse. Here is a young man who is clearly trying to make a name for himself with his attempts to land a job with persuasive charm. We start to get an insight into the side of media coverage rarely discussed in mainstream cinema as indicated in the title of the film. Unsurprisingly the TV station industry is portrayed as cut throat, crass and venal in Bloom’s attempt to seduce TV executive Nina Romina (played by the ever elegant Rene Russo). The journey of self-establishment in the industry is one of great intrigue given the modern day media coverage of success in our age of affluenza.
The film has a very neat supporting cast which includes star of the future Riz Ahmed playing a vulnerable and more sensitive young unemployed man trying to earn his way into an industry which demands a far thicker skin. Bill Paxton convinces as the man who inspires Bloom into the nightcrawling industry when we see cameramen filming victims in the night in their moment of need whilst the lawmen aid them. Everyone feeds of the Gyllenhaal’s sociopathic performance who persuades an audience to feel his drive and frustration in achieving his goals.
The film does not rely a lot on background music in order to make the situation as realist as possible. The film, almost like in Batman, is featured mainly in the beautiful night without the vehicles or graphics being too fancy or CGI. The settings are brilliant especially in the TV studios where the key new stories are read and what Bloom hopes to be doing in the near future. The media images on the new broadcast panel of where Russo is making her final cut decisions are clearly manipulated with flashy images to display such tragic accident and murder scenes as the objects of desire for both Russo & Gyllenhaal in their sociopathic relationship for ratings and profit.
The ultimate lesson for the film is success without conscience and at all costs. The film demonstrates that those who get to the top neglect many aspects and are unmoved by the collateral damage. Channel 4 did a 2 hour documentary of Psychopath night where fellow Brokeback Mountain star Heath Ledger’s turn as the Joker was voted as the top movie psychopath-a person only empathetic to oneself. Louis Bloom is definitely worth a mention in the near future. He might also get a mention in a new edition of Oliver James’ office politics of the new meaning of “hard work”. The rating is R but the film has no faults and you don’t have to be a Gyllenhaal fan to enjoy the ride.
This is a film which received publicity via a brief picture of Jake Gyllenhaal joining the method actors club with the changed weight loss appearance(i.e. Matthew McCounaughy for Dallas Buyers Club in Oscar winning form and of course Christian Bale before Batman in the Machinist). This is perhaps his best performance to date and very unfortunate that he was not Oscar nominated for it given that his performance had less academy votes against a number of symbolic biopic roles which fit the Oscar criteria.
We start off with Louis Bloom (Gyllenhaal) who instantly indicates that the viewer should not be routing for him with the first deed he executes without any remorse. Here is a young man who is clearly trying to make a name for himself with his attempts to land a job with persuasive charm. We start to get an insight into the side of media coverage rarely discussed in mainstream cinema as indicated in the title of the film. Unsurprisingly the TV station industry is portrayed as cut throat, crass and venal in Bloom’s attempt to seduce TV executive Nina Romina (played by the ever elegant Rene Russo). The journey of self-establishment in the industry is one of great intrigue given the modern day media coverage of success in our age of affluenza.
The film has a very neat supporting cast which includes star of the future Riz Ahmed playing a vulnerable and more sensitive young unemployed man trying to earn his way into an industry which demands a far thicker skin. Bill Paxton convinces as the man who inspires Bloom into the nightcrawling industry when we see cameramen filming victims in the night in their moment of need whilst the lawmen aid them. Everyone feeds of the Gyllenhaal’s sociopathic performance who persuades an audience to feel his drive and frustration in achieving his goals.
The film does not rely a lot on background music in order to make the situation as realist as possible. The film, almost like in Batman, is featured mainly in the beautiful night without the vehicles or graphics being too fancy or CGI. The settings are brilliant especially in the TV studios where the key new stories are read and what Bloom hopes to be doing in the near future. The media images on the new broadcast panel of where Russo is making her final cut decisions are clearly manipulated with flashy images to display such tragic accident and murder scenes as the objects of desire for both Russo & Gyllenhaal in their sociopathic relationship for ratings and profit.
The ultimate lesson for the film is success without conscience and at all costs. The film demonstrates that those who get to the top neglect many aspects and are unmoved by the collateral damage. Channel 4 did a 2 hour documentary of Psychopath night where fellow Brokeback Mountain star Heath Ledger’s turn as the Joker was voted as the top movie psychopath-a person only empathetic to oneself. Louis Bloom is definitely worth a mention in the near future. He might also get a mention in a new edition of Oliver James’ office politics of the new meaning of “hard work”. The rating is R but the film has no faults and you don’t have to be a Gyllenhaal fan to enjoy the ride.