Lazy Film Critic Movie Reviews
Nocturnal Animals
So after waiting a damn long time for this movie to come out in my area, I finally got the chance to see the much awaited Tom Ford film, Nocturnal Animals. The film is about a woman facing the darker parts of her past forced to confront the darker parts of her past after her former Husband sends her a draft of his most recent, and most violent book. The film stars Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal, Michael Shannon, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Isla Fisher, Armie Hammer, Laura Linney, Michael Sheen, and Jena Malone.
For the second time in a row this year, Amy Adams has delivered one of the best performances in her career. 2016 is shaping up to be an outstanding year for her, between this and Arrival. Much like her performance in Arrival, this is a subtle performance filled with nuance and emotion in hidden ways. What impresses me about her as an actor is that I don't see her ever needing to have a big loud show of emotion to convey feeling, it's all in the eyes and the face, that's hard for an actor to pull off but - and especially in her last 2 films - she pulls it off with ease. I wouldn't be at all surprised if we see her win an Oscar this year for either one of the performances she's delivered.
Now what makes this movie really fascinating in how it tells its story is that it tells it's story by actually telling three of them. We get the two stories straight off, the one about Amy Adams character coping with her past, and a second with her having flashbacks to her past and telling the story there. The third story is such a fascinating idea, and although it's one that has sort of been done before, the way its used for the movie is nothing short of genius. Essentially, the third story arc in the film is the book that the main character is reading, so think Princess Bride but by way of No Country for Old Men. And what makes this execution so special is that it's important to the main story of the film, it runs parallel with the events shown to us in the present day and her flashbacks, and as I said, it's utterly brilliant.
Now, one thing that I'm sure has been talked about to death is the visuals of this movie. Each of the three story arcs in the film has a different color scheme and visual grading, which I found very helpful as a viewer because sometimes this sort of thing can be difficult to differentiate in the editing process. The framing and composition in this movie is thoughtful and meticulous, there's some marvelous attention to detail here in the way each shot is set up and what's in each shot. There's a particular sense of genuine craftsmanship with the shots of this film that I don't normally see in movies, so it was a joy to watch it on screen.
Final Rating
Nocturnal Animals isn't a film for everybody. At times it can be a little too violent, a little too weird, or confusing in its execution and meaning. However to anyone interested in this sort of movie, Nocturnal Animals presents just the right kind of challenging film. It's probably one of my favorites of 2016, and I have to say I'm really glad I got to see it.
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