Tom Ford's Nocturnal Animals is a pretty good thriller somewhat encumbered by Mr. Ford's attempts at significance. Amy Adams is an insomniac gallery owner depressed by her loveless marriage and a lack of meaning in her life. The titular manuscript is sent to her by her former husband, Edward. Jake Gyllenhaal plays Edward in flashbacks that trace their relationship's arc and also plays the protagonist in the visual rendering of the manuscript.
The story within the story is the more compelling part of the film. A trio of thugs in West Texas rape and kill Gyllenhaal's wife and child. A spectral sheriff, well played my Michael Shannon, tries to track down the killers and, when justice fails, helps Gyllenhaal take the law into his own hands. Ford is at his lean best here. There is an apt sense of menace in the suspense scenes, greatly helped by Abel Korzeniowski's Herrmannesque score.
Unfortunately, Ford wants to one up Hitchcock with numerous artsy flourishes and the framing story featuring Adams falters badly. Ford pads the film with too many location shots. One, featuring the LA freeway cloverleaf seems particularly gratuitous. A montage of naked zaftig dancers, taken from a video installation at Adams' gallery, also falls flat.
All in all, Ford's work with his actors keeps Nocturnal Animals interesting. Laura Linney, Jena Malone, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Karl Glusman all are effectively utilized. Amy Adams is good as always, but has a fairly lifeless role. Gyllenhaal, never the most elastic actor, is well cast here. His big, deer like eyes radiate suffering. Nocturnal Animals may not project the meaning and significance Tom Ford intends, but it functions well enough for a thriller. (5/14/17)
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