The Machinist
The final movie in last night's viewing was The Machinist. It's taken me forever to get around to watching it, but I'm glad I finally did.
Christian Bale, almost unrecognizable after having lost around 60 pounds to play this part, is Trevor Reznik, a factory worker who has not slept in a year. As the movie progresses, things sink deeper and deeper into paranoia and reality begins to come undone. There's really not much more that can be said without ruining fantastic pieces of the film.
Much like Memento, The Machinist does a superb job of drawing us in to the main character's reality. Trevor's existence is, at best, a low-key one at first. As things begin to fall apart, the frenetic and unbalanced energy coursing through him comes across to us--not just through Bale's excellent performance, but through subtle tricks of camera angle, lighting and editing. There are more than a few times when the viewer is left wondering where, exactly, Trevor is, but that's OK in the context of the film, because the character isn't exactly clear on it all the time.
If nothing else, watch this film to make note of the structure that supports it. The repetition of themes and motifs is done with such skill that they seem to be random at first. This film is visual literature.
It's not the happiest of films, but there is a certain catharsis to be had by watching it.
Christian Bale, almost unrecognizable after having lost around 60 pounds to play this part, is Trevor Reznik, a factory worker who has not slept in a year. As the movie progresses, things sink deeper and deeper into paranoia and reality begins to come undone. There's really not much more that can be said without ruining fantastic pieces of the film.
Much like Memento, The Machinist does a superb job of drawing us in to the main character's reality. Trevor's existence is, at best, a low-key one at first. As things begin to fall apart, the frenetic and unbalanced energy coursing through him comes across to us--not just through Bale's excellent performance, but through subtle tricks of camera angle, lighting and editing. There are more than a few times when the viewer is left wondering where, exactly, Trevor is, but that's OK in the context of the film, because the character isn't exactly clear on it all the time.
If nothing else, watch this film to make note of the structure that supports it. The repetition of themes and motifs is done with such skill that they seem to be random at first. This film is visual literature.
It's not the happiest of films, but there is a certain catharsis to be had by watching it.