Movie Review: Loving

Loving

Directed by: Jeff Nichols.

Written by: Jeff Nichols.

Starring: Ruth Negga (Mildred Loving), Joel Edgerton (Richard Loving), Michael Shannon (Grey Villet), Marton Csokas (Sheriff Brooks), Nick Kroll (Bernie Cohen), Terri Abney (Garnet Jeter), Alano Miller (Raymond Green), Jon Bass (Phil Hirschkop).

 

Loving is an uncommonly quiet, subtle film about the couple at the center of a Supreme Court case in the 1960s, that resulted in interracial marriage being legalized nationwide. That probably sounds like the recipe for a typical, inspiring Oscar-bait type film, and in the hands of most writer/directors, it almost definitely would be. But this film was written and directed by Jeff Nichols – who in his first four films, Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter, Mud and Midnight Special – has established himself as the premiere filmmaker of the American South of his generation – treating his characters with respect, and refusing to turn them into the caricatures they so often are onscreen. To be honest, the fact that he had not made a film dealing with race in the South to this point in his career is kind of curious – but he corrects that with Loving – and does so in a quietly powerful way.

 

The film stars Ruth Negga and Joel Edgerton as Mildred and Richard Loving. The film opens and they are already in love, and she’s pregnant. He buys a plot of land in their small, Virginia hometown – and the pair head off to Washington DC to get married. When they return, they are arrested by the Sheriff (Marton Csokas) – and end up having to except a plea deal to avoid a jail sentence. If they leave the state for 25 years, they can avoid jail. They head to Washington – their small family grows, but both miss their families, and their life in Virginia. Eventually, the ACLU takes up their case – appealing all the way to the Supreme Court, and the family quietly moves back to Virginia into an isolated farm house.

 

What makes Loving different from other films of its kind, is how subtle and quiet the film is – and the respect it pays to its characters. This is not a film filled with big speeches and personalities – even the eventual Supreme Court hearing is subdued, and viewed only briefly in passing. Every character in the film is treated with respect – the Southern Sheriff maybe a racist, but he’s not a sneering villain spouting out racial slurs – like more than one other character in the film all he really says to Richard is “You really should have known better”. The heart of the film are the two lead performances. Joel Edgerton has never been better – his Richard is a man of few words – he doesn’t want to be the center of attention, he just wants to be left alone. When he tells his lawyer he won’t attend the Supreme Court hearing, and is asked what he wants him to the say to the judges, he takes a beat and then replies simply “Tell them I love my wife”. For Richard, that should be more than enough explanation for anyone. For her part, Negga undergoes a quiet transformation in the film – near the beginning – as she is arrested, and then forced to move to Washington, she seems smaller and scared all the time. Throughout the film, she becomes stronger – more steely eyed and resolved to correct what she thinks (correctly) is a great injustice to her family. Like her husband, more than anything, she just want to be left alone to live the way she wants to. The subtle power of these two performances are not easy to explain – but they brilliantly underline the films overall tone.

 

In many ways, the film is probably the least complex of Nichols films to date. It’s pretty much impossible to oppose interracial marriage in 2016 unless you are an admitted racist. The film lacks the quality of Nichols’ other films – that remain fascinating because their main characters are complex, and make mistakes – and it’s easy to see them in multiple different ways. Yet, what Loving lacks in that complexity, it makes up for in its quiet, observational style – the way Nichols and his cast create these characters, and the lives they live – makes you feel their love for each other. Films about racism in the South are often more bombastic than this – but in Loving Nichols shows the insidiousness of the quiet racism – and the real world costs it has on the people who live through it. It’s a film of sneaky power that builds throughout its runtime – culminating in moments that are unforgettable. It’s also a film that lingers in your brain – and heart – long after it’s over. Loving is even more proof that Nichols is one of the best filmmakers currently working.

Movie Review: Midnight Special

Midnight Special

Directed by:  Jeff Nichols.   

Written by:  Jeff Nichols.

Starring: Michael Shannon (Roy), Joel Edgerton (Lucas), Kirsten Dunst (Sarah Tomlin), Jaeden Lieberher (Alton Meyer), Adam Driver (Sevier), Bill Camp (Doak), Scott Haze (Levi), Sam Shepard (Calvin Meyer), Paul Sparks (Agent Miller), David Jensen (Elden).

 

In just four films, Jeff Nichols has become one of the most interesting filmmakers working in America today. Each of his films has had a bigger budget than the film before – each are reaching for bigger audiences, and yet unlike many indie filmmakers gone Hollywood, Nichols has remained steadfastly himself. There are more special effects in his fourth film, Midnight Special, than his previous three films combined – and there are deliberate echoes of Nichols’ influences – Steven Spielberg, John Carpenter, Stephen King, etc. – throughout the film. And yet, the film is still completely Nichols own. Like Shotgun Stories, Take Shelter and Mud, Midnight Special is very much a family drama, wrapped up in genre film trappings. His films are increasingly combined the real and the fantastic, culminating with Midnight Special. I’m not sure if it’s Nichols’ best film to date – but it’s certainly his most ambitious.

 

The film thrusts the audience right into the story, and trusts them enough to let them catch up to what is happening. Essentially, Roy (Michael Shannon) and Lucas (Joel Edgerton) have kidnapped Roy’s 8-year-old son Alton (Jaeden Lieberher), and are taking him across the American South in an old muscle car bound for places unknown. Alton had been “adopted” by Calvin Meyer (Sam Shepard), who is running some sort of cult in Texas, with Alton – and his strange gifts – at the center of it. The cult worship Alton – and are determined to get him back. But then, so is the government – who realize the boy has access to information there is no way he should possibly have – and want to figure out why. Right from the start then, Alton is at the center of a three way tug of war – between the religion of the cult, the science of the government (represented by Adam Driver’s Sevier, a scientist who marvels at what Alton can do), and his own parents – as eventually, they will meet up with Sarah (Kristen Dunst), Alton’s mother as well.

 

To say more would be to give too much away, so I won’t go that far. What the film does do, brilliantly, is too slowly and surely setup each of its characters, and their motivations. It is a slight disappointment that some characters are jettisoned along the way – Sam Shepard is so good in the early scenes as the cult leader, it’s a shame we don’t see more of him – and the same could be said for his followers, including Doak (Bill Camp), the man dispatched to fetch Alton back – who isn’t sure he’s doing the right thing, but is going to do so anyway. Adam Driver is, once again, excellent – and has some great scenes, and is pivotal to the plot at several moments – but he too is jettisoned. This is something that often happens in Coen Brother Movies – the supporting cast is so well sketched, even if characters only get a scene or two, that you often want more of them. But Nichols stays disciplined – and sticks with the main story, which is ultimately one of the movie’s strengths.

 

The film features one of Michael Shannon’s best performances to date as Roy. Shannon has been in each of Nichols’ four film (he was the star of three, and had a small supporting role in Mud – which was the right choice, as the title character in that film fit star Matthew McConaughey like a glove). Shannon, of course, is gifted at playing creeps and psychos – but he often doesn’t get credit for just how subtle he can be. Here, he’s playing a father who is willing to do anything for his son. Most movies would give Shannon a big, soppy, sentimental speech at some point – but Midnight Special never does – right up until his final moments in the film, he is more defined by his actions than his words. Yet, Shannon makes Roy into a tremendously complex and sympathetic character – even when we disagree with his actions, and at times it’s hard not to, we understand them. Dunst is almost as great as Sarah – and again, the film doesn’t rely on speeches to convey the love she has for her child – even in her emotionally gut-wrenching final moments with Alton.

 

The primary achievement of the film though is Nichols – who does a wonderful job here as a visual storyteller. You can certainly see aspects of Spielberg 1970s-80s Spielberg (Close Encounters, ET) or John Carpenter (Starman) – but Nichols makes the visuals his own. He’s one of the few filmmakers who genuinely seems to be able to portray those in “flyover” country in complex, thought provoking ways – and also able to touch of spiritual themes without preaching. The film goes big at the end – but not in terms of action, but in terms of ideas, and yes, visual effects. Like Take Shelter, the ending raises as many questions as it answers – and I genuinely like that approach – and certainly did here.

 

Midnight Special is one of those films that I really liked as I was watching it – but that has grown in my mind since it ended. It is a brilliantly structured, acted and directed film – and it touches of themes that as a parent, I found profoundly moving. It confirms Nichols’ standing as one of the best filmmakers working in America today.

Movie Review: Mud

Mud
Directed by: Jeff Nichols.
Written by: Jeff Nichols.
Starring: Matthew McConaughey (Mud), Reese Witherspoon (Juniper), Tye Sheridan (Ellis), Jacob Lofland (Neckbone), Sarah Paulson (Mary Lee), Ray McKinnon (Senior), Sam Shepard (Tom Blankenship), Michael Shannon (Galen), Paul Sparks (Carver), Joe Don Baker (King), Johnny Cheek (Kyle), Bonnie Sturdivant (May Pearl), Stuart Greer (Miller), Clayton Carson (Pryor).

In just three films, Jeff Nichols has established himself as one of the most interesting directors working today. He specializes in films set in the areas of the Southern U.S.A. that rarely have movies made about them – and even more rarely have respectful movies made about them. While his movies all have a certain degree of realism to them – there is something a little bit more in each of them. In his wonderful, little seen debut, Shotgun Stories, set in his native Arkansas, he tells the story of two warring sets of brothers – the ones who were abandoned by the father to raise the others – but when you name one set of brothers “Son, Boy and Kid” you know you are looking at an allegory. His even better follow-up, Take Shelter, was a paranoid thriller set in Ohio, with Michael Shannon as a regular guy convinces the storm to end all storms is coming. That film would have made Hitchcock proud, and is a film that grows in my mind even now, two years later. His latest film is Mud – which is a coming of age story that also has elements of a fairy tale at times. Once again, Nichols has made a wonderful film.

The film stars newcomers Tye Sheridan as Ellis and Jacob Lofland as the inventively named Neckbone, who live on the river in a small Arkansas town. Ellis’ father is a fisherman, and Neckbone lives with his uncle, who collects clams from the river bottom. They know their way of life is ending – as soon as they leave, river authority will tear down their houseboats – but for the boys, they love this place. Neckbone has heard from his uncle that on a small island on the river there is a boat caught in a tree. And when you’re a 13 or 14 year old boy, there are few things cooler than a boat in a tree. So off they head to the island – and they do in fact discover the boat. But they also discover a man living there. He calls himself Mud (Matthew McConaughey), and takes offense when Neckbone calls him a bum –“Call me a hobo, because they work for their money. Or call me homeless, because right now, that’s true. But you call me a bum again, and I’ll teach you the respect your daddy never did” he tells him. Mud has a gun, but he’s also fairly nice to the boys. He says he’ll be there for only a few days – he just has to wait for someone to meet him. And if the boys will help him out for some food, that would be appreciated. While most adults wouldn’t trust someone living on a small island, who packs a pistol, when you’re 13, you want to trust – want to believe. Especially when Mud tells Ellis he’s waiting for his girlfriend who he is madly in love with. Ellis’ parents are on the verge of divorce, and his own crush is out of his league – so he needs a love story to believe in.

Mud makes a good alternative to all the blockbusters out right now. We’re only three weeks into blockbuster season, and while I mildly enjoyed Iron Man 3, didn’t hate (but didn’t really like) The Great Gatsby, and was hugely entertained by Star Trek: Into Darkness, I feel myself already tiring of the blockbuster aesthetic of non-stop action, rapid fire editing and style over substance. A movie like Mud is the opposite of that – some will complain that the film is too slow and “nothing happens in it”, but that’s not true at all. Mud is a movie that takes it’s time – it lets its characters breathe, and become more than just pawns for Nichols to move around to simply advance a lame plot. You get to know these people, and care for them. There are no characters here that are simply here for convenience’s sake – even characters with little screen time – like Sam Shepherd’s grumpy old man across the river, or Ellis’ worn out mother, and especially Nichols’ favorite Michael Shannon as Neckbone’s uncle – who cares about his nephew, and knows enough to know he isn’t particularly suited to raise him, but he doesn’t have a choice. Ray McKinnon also leaves a large impression as Ellis’ father, who doesn’t like what is happening to him, but is powerless to stop them. Even when the movie introduces the bad guys – guys hunting down Mud – they are slightly more than generic bag men.

But the best performances are by the four major characters. After years of coasting on his easy Southern charm in one lazy romantic comedy after another, McConaughey has established himself as a more talented actor than I ever imagined – from his movie star performance in The Lincoln Lawyer, to his brilliant, slightly more than a cameo in Richard Linklater’s Bernie, to Soderbergh’s Magic Mike, which turns McConaughey’s persona on its head, to William Friedkin’s chilling Killer Joe to Lee Daniels’ over the top The Paperboy, and now this film, where he plays a man blinded by love, up to his eyeballs in trouble, who turns out to be more complex than we first thought, McConaughey is on a roll. If this isn’t quite his best performance in this group, it’s close. Another movie star known for coasting through romantic comedies, Reese Witherspoon, is always quite good as the object of his affection – a woman who knows the damage she causes, but still cannot stop herself for causing it. And from newcomers Sheridan and Lofland, Nichols gets a pair of the best children’s performance in recent memory. The two perfectly capture the confusing time right on the cusp of being a teenager – not quite there yet, but older than a child. They half grasp what is going on, and want to do the right thing – and think they are.

Mud may be a touch too long, and perhaps Nichols should have found a slightly better way to end the film – he has a few too many storylines crashing together at once at the end. But overall, Mud is another wonderful film by one of the best new filmmakers around. Nichols is just getting started, and he’s already made three great films. Some directors go their entire career and don’t do that.

Movie Review: Take Shelter

Take Shelter ****

Directed by: Jeff Nichols.

Written by: Jeff Nichols.

Starring: Michael Shannon (Curtis LaForche), Jessica Chastain (Samantha LaForche), Ray McKinnon (Kyle), Katy Mixon (Nat), Kathy Baker (Sarah), Shea Whigham (Dewart), Lisa Gay Hamilton (Kendra), Tova Stewart (Hannah LaForche).

Jeff Nichols’ Take Shelter is a paranoid thriller about a man who thinks he is going insane, but cannot help himself. His mother was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic when she about his age, and now he is starting to think he maybe heading down that same path. He has started to have dreams of a rain storm, where it is essentially oil and not water pouring down. These dreams also include some sort of violent episode – where he or his daughter are attacked by the family dog or a friend or a stranger or even his wife. So convinced is he that a storm is coming that he cleans out the old storm shelter in the backyard – and when he thinks that isn’t enough, he decides to expand it by taking out a home improvement loan his family cannot afford. He has a good job as a construction worker in rural Ohio, but he can’t concentrate on it. His world is collapsing all around him, and while he knows he is being irrational, he is powerless to stop it. Things are spiraling out of control.

The man is named Curtis and he is played in one of the best performances of the year by Michael Shannon – that actor who has quietly built up a hell of a resume playing characters who are not quite right in the head. Remember his fiercely determined office worker in Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center or as the mentally deranged man in Bug or in the sick truth teller in

Revolutionary Road

? His work in Take Shelter is just as good as it was in those films, and yet for an actor who seems to always being playing paranoid characters, this simply is a rerun. All of his characters suffer differently, and Shannon plays them differently as well. Here, he is a normal guy whose paranoia is getting the best of him – he is equally convinced that he is becoming mentally ill and that he is completely right in his beliefs. These two sides fight with each other until he’s not sure what’s real anymore.

Writer/director Nichols, who made the wonderful but barely seen Shotgun Stories in 2008, has followed up that film, about two warring sets of sons of the same father (one set hates their old man, the other side adores him), with this view of suburban paranoia that immediately brought to mind Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds – and not just because of a few scenes involving actual birds. What both films share is a growing sense of unease, that things as seemingly perfect as they are, are not quite right. Hitchcock’s film was about the poisonous atmosphere in 1960s suburbia, and Nichols film is about the increasing paranoia in the wake of 9/11, Hurricane Katrina and other disasters – both man made and natural. As the movie goes along, Nichols plays with the sound a little bit, to get us inside of Curtis’ head – and it’s not a pretty place to be.

The tension in the movie grows until it is almost unbearable. Shannon gives the films best performance, but praise too should be given to Jessica Chastain who plays his wife, who loves him and cares about him, but is trying to look out for their future together – and the future of their daughter, who is deaf and needs surgery. Take Shelter is a thriller – and a well made thriller at that – but what makes the film so special is how real and immediate the film feels. This is a story about how we live right now.