Overall Rating
  Awesome: 53.92%
Worth A Look: 34.31%
Average: 7.84%
Pretty Bad: 2.94%
Total Crap: 0.98%
8 reviews, 54 user ratings
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| Machinist, The |
by Brian McKay
"Brad Anderson serves up another Session of Mindfuckery"
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After SESSION 9, I became a fan of Brad Anderson - a filmmaker who, up to that point, had been mostly known for quirky but clever films that could be loosely grouped into the "Romantic Comedy" genre (HAPPY ACCIDENTS, NEXT STOP WONDERLAND), except that they were far better than about 98 percent of the crappy and formulaic rom-coms that come out of Hollywood. In fact, one of the reasons Anderson wanted to do a film like SESSION 9 was because he didn't want to be labeled as a romantic comedy director. Ever since, fans have been eagerly awaiting his return to the horror/suspense genre, and it has arrive in the form of THE MACHINISTTrevor Reznik (Christian Bale - who lost so much weight for this film that he made Lindsay Lohan look like Sally Struthers) is a bit fucked up. He grows increasingly emaciated no matter how much he eats, and he can't sleep. In fact, as he confides to his steady hooker Stevie (Jennifer Jason Leigh), he hasn't slept in nearly a year. On top of that, he wonders if he's beginning to lose his mind, because somebody has been leaving creepy little notes on his refrigerator, and people at the machine shop where he works are insisting that the new guy named Ivan (John Sharian), whom Reznick has spoken to more than once, doesn't exist.
But when a co-worker named Miller (Michael Ironside) loses his arm in an accident, an accident caused by Reznik while he is distracted by Ivan, Reznik's feelings of guilt turn into paranoia - especially when a machine he is working on the following week somehow turns on with his arm still inside.
Meanwhile, Reznick befriends a waitress named Maria (Aitana Sánchez-Gijón) at the all-night coffee shop he frequents after work. But as he gets closer to Maria and her young son, Nicholas (Matthew Romero), he begins to have more strange and unsettling encounters with Ivan, and finds more clues in his apartment in the form of games of Hangman left on Post-it notes.
THE MACHINIST, though bearing some superficial similarities to films like JACOB'S LADDER, is a clever and well-written film rife with symbolism (a scene where Reznik takes Nicholas on an amusement park spookhouse ride that turns nasty is a brilliant highlight). Bale plays the role to the hilt, and his astonishing weight loss is ample evidence that this is a man fully dedicated to his craft. Reznick is a likeable character, but unsettling at the same time, his expression haunted by some great weight on his shoulders. Fans of BATMAN BEGINS will note that he went from his normal build to a human skeleton, and then right back up to his fighting weight, in a matter of weeks - and the difference is truly astonishing. And while much of the references are so subtle only highly literary types may catch them all (a thorough familiarity with the works of Dostoyevsky is not required, but it certainly wouldn't hurt), there are ample clues scattered throughout THE MACHINIST, and their signifigance becomes crystal clear by the time the end credits roll. It's the kind of film that begs repeat viewings, in order to decipher all of the hints that you may have missed.Although Brad Anderson's work in general has been exceptional, it seems he may have a true niche for creating moody and psychological horror. His use of lighting, editing, sound design, and score hit just the right nerve endings, creating a film that keeps turning over in your mental gears for days afterward.
link directly to this review at http://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=8511&reviewer=258
originally posted: 06/20/05 14:20:05
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OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2004 Sundance Film Festival. For more in the 2004 Sundance Film Festival series, click here.
OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2004 Chicago Film Festival. For more in the 2004 Chicago Film Festival series, click here.
OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2004 Vancouver Film Festival. For more in the 2004 Vancouver Film Festival series, click here.
OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2004 Toronto Film Festival. For more in the 2004 Toronto Film Festival series, click here.
OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2004 Mill Valley Film Festival. For more in the 2004 Mill Valley Film Festival series, click here.
OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2004 Leeds Film Festival. For more in the 2004 Leeds Film Festival series, click here.
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USA
22-Oct-2004 (R)
DVD: 07-Jun-2005
UK
N/A
Australia
02-Jun-2005
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