2014 Film OCD #32 - Take Shelter is a movie, along with Mud, that convinces me that Jeff Nichols is well on his way to becoming a major talent in the directors chair. The film, which may be about a man going insane or a modern Noah story, is genuinely creepy and unsettling and edited in such a way that you dont know quite where to stand. It also features a terrific lead performance by Michael Shannon. And Jessica Chastain, alas relegated largely to the supportive wife role, rounds out the cast nicely and delivers a strong supporting performance. Its a really terrific and sometimes terrifying film. One of the things I note about the film is that Chastain is regularly going to church while Shannon is staying home. Thats got to mean something, even if I cant quite put it together. Nichols is careful for most of the run time to not beat you over the head with whether Michael Shannons dreams are prophetic or delusional and the way he manages to subtly insert religion into the film is a real neat trick. At the same time, Nichols is tackling the theme of the onset of mental illness and making it terrifying for the character and the audience. I dont think the last scene of the film quite works, that seems to push it over from nicely ambiguous into a clear answer, but the film is a clear win for me. Im really looking forward to Jeff Nichols and Michael Shannon have up their sleeve together in the future, and I predict there will be some special movies in store.
Posted on: Mon, 24 Mar 2014 02:26:52 +0000
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