BEST MOVIES OF 2014, #5: Nightcrawler. In his freshman effort, director Dan Gilroy created one of the creepiest, ickiest, and most memorable movies of 2014. Jake Gyllenhaal plays a “nightcrawler” – a videographer who tries to be first on the scene of any accident or tragedy, hoping to sell his blood-soaked footage to local news stations fighting to get ratings. What’s most impressive about Nightcrawler is that, through its depiction of characters and the moonlight L.A. streets that they work in, it captures and conveys that little-seen world in a way that transports you there. And it does so impassively: instead of judging its characters and their amorality, it simply depicts them and leaves all judgment to you, the viewer. Because it didn’t seek to validate or criticize, Nightcrawler succeeds as a character study that is also highly entertaining. One more thought: I have never been much of a fan of Jake Gyllenhaal, but holy hell, his performance in this movie was one of the most memorable of 2014 and clearly establishes him as one of the best actors working today.
Posted on: Tue, 06 Jan 2015 00:46:18 +0000
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