A review by Brooks Rich
This is one of the more recent films that will be covered on forgotten film Friday. I can't believe this film just kind of came and went. We just don't get thrillers as tense and well thought out as The Gift from 2015 was. Once again it's a film where I don't want to really spoil any beat of the story. The suspense comes from not really knowing where the story is going and even questioning who we as an audience are supposed to root for.
Jason Bateman and Rebecca Hall are Simon and Robyn, a married couple who relocate to Los Angeles from Chicago so Simon can start a new job. While out shopping they run into an old high school friend of Simon's, Gordo, played by writer and director Joel Edgerton. Gordo becomes overly friendly with the couple and keeps sending gifts, such as new koi for the koi ponds at their house. But something doesn't feel right and things become tense between Simon and Gordo.
That's all you need to know. Like I said it's hard to tell who to trust and who not to trust. Robyn can probably be considered the protagonist as she is caught between the two men. Edgerton as director and writer does a great job of slowly building up the tension. Every time Gordo returns you feel a little bit more uncomfortable. It might be cliche at this point to call a film Hitchcockian but I truly believe this is a film Hitchcock would make if he was alive today.
The real revelation of this film is Jason Bateman. He's always been good at playing the jackass but in a comedic role. Here Edgerton masterfully uses him as the cocky and kind of mean spirited Simon. Bateman does a great job of playing Simon at different levels, whether he's the victim or standing up for himself. Also props to Edgerton for pulling triple duty as director, writer, and actor. He's one of the best working actors right now and made one of the best directorial debuts in a long time.
I want to discuss an aspect of this film without any context whatsoever. This film has the single greatest act of revenge I have ever seen in a film. It is so brilliant and satisfying and deserved for the character. But at the same time it is wrong on so many levels. It feels like how someone would get revenge in real life. It's so good. It's my favorite thing about The Gift and of course I can't discuss it here. Like Frailty last week, please check this movie out. It is has one of the best endings in modern cinema history. It is an ending that is both satisfying and ambitious. Watch this film. You won't be sorry you did.
This is one of the more recent films that will be covered on forgotten film Friday. I can't believe this film just kind of came and went. We just don't get thrillers as tense and well thought out as The Gift from 2015 was. Once again it's a film where I don't want to really spoil any beat of the story. The suspense comes from not really knowing where the story is going and even questioning who we as an audience are supposed to root for.
Jason Bateman and Rebecca Hall are Simon and Robyn, a married couple who relocate to Los Angeles from Chicago so Simon can start a new job. While out shopping they run into an old high school friend of Simon's, Gordo, played by writer and director Joel Edgerton. Gordo becomes overly friendly with the couple and keeps sending gifts, such as new koi for the koi ponds at their house. But something doesn't feel right and things become tense between Simon and Gordo.
That's all you need to know. Like I said it's hard to tell who to trust and who not to trust. Robyn can probably be considered the protagonist as she is caught between the two men. Edgerton as director and writer does a great job of slowly building up the tension. Every time Gordo returns you feel a little bit more uncomfortable. It might be cliche at this point to call a film Hitchcockian but I truly believe this is a film Hitchcock would make if he was alive today.
The real revelation of this film is Jason Bateman. He's always been good at playing the jackass but in a comedic role. Here Edgerton masterfully uses him as the cocky and kind of mean spirited Simon. Bateman does a great job of playing Simon at different levels, whether he's the victim or standing up for himself. Also props to Edgerton for pulling triple duty as director, writer, and actor. He's one of the best working actors right now and made one of the best directorial debuts in a long time.
I want to discuss an aspect of this film without any context whatsoever. This film has the single greatest act of revenge I have ever seen in a film. It is so brilliant and satisfying and deserved for the character. But at the same time it is wrong on so many levels. It feels like how someone would get revenge in real life. It's so good. It's my favorite thing about The Gift and of course I can't discuss it here. Like Frailty last week, please check this movie out. It is has one of the best endings in modern cinema history. It is an ending that is both satisfying and ambitious. Watch this film. You won't be sorry you did.
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