*Originally written February 19th, 2016*
"American Psycho"
Nightcrawler is one of those films that prove the Oscars are a poor joke. The fact Jake Gyllenhaal didn't get a best actor nomination is a laughable action that further takes away from their credibility. But they made up for it by nominating Eddie Redmayne for his Stephen Hawking performance, that was nothing more than blatant Oscar bait. Honestly, fuck the Oscars.
Gyllenhaal plays Lou Bloom, a deeply disturbed man, who seems to live on odd jobs. He quickly finds a career path when he drives past a car crash and sees a camera crew filming it and decides that's what he wants to do.
What an excellent piece of work this was from first time director, Dan Gilroy, who gives the audience a dark, twisted and satirical take on the American Dream. On top of this, he creates a gorgeous film that highlights the nightlife of Los Angeles in a how I haven't seen since 2011's Drive. On top of this, we get a score from James Newton Howard, which is just beautiful, especially the opening and closing tracks.
The compelling narrative showcases the rise of Lou's career, which gets more and more twisted and insane till you get to a point where he can't become more of a monster. He subverts any expectation where you believe that he can't do anything worse than he does previously. It keeps his character insanely unpredictable and unnerving, you really have no idea what this guy is capable of.
It's one of those films that had so much I loved about it, but none if it comes close to Gyllenhaal's performance. He has embodied a new sociopath for the ages. His creepy smile, intelligence and unpredictability is terrifying. Lou Bloom has quickly become one of my favorite characters of all time, with his calculated actions and deplorable acts, but still he's somehow likable and you kinda root for him, he's smart, ambitious and knows how to get what he wants. The ending is utterly twisted, yet still victorious for the character. I have a soft spot for films where the bad guy wins. We could all learn a little from Lou Bloom.
It has a lot to say about the media too. The characters are all essentially vultures, profiting off the death and misery from others, and the more graphic the footage, the better the ratings. It was a nice, satirical jab at crime journalism, and probably takes pot shots at the job by showing the best at it is a completely heartless sociopath.
Nightcrawler is a unique, original and gorgeous piece of film making from a first time director, boosted by one of the best performances of all time from Jake Gyllenhaal.
10/10 Dans
Nightcrawler is out now on Blu-ray and DVD in the UK
Watch the trailer below:
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