Nightcrawler
- Jul 24, 2015
- 2 min read
Saying that this movie is dark might just be one of the greatest understatements of all time. It is often easy to miss a good movie on Netflix due to the vast quantity of mediocre films on the sight, but this one easily stands out. A quote that everyone who has ever taken a media related class has heard is, “if it bleeds it leads.” This quote is brought to life in a way which causes you to fear the closing credits will say based on a true story.
Nightcrawler follows the simple, analytical, and most importantly motivated Luis Bloom as he seeks a meaningful career. The career he lands himself is a simple one which finds him filming tragic events around Los Angeles. That description could explain the life of any reporter though. Luis over the course of the movie transitions from looking for “blood to lead” to craving the blood needed to lead with almost vampiric tendencies.
As the blood lust driving Luis grows his ability to communicate with people evolves. What were once almost nonsensical Wikipedia explanations of his ambitions become calculated overwhelming transactions of his reality. When Luis first interviews Rick for his internship it sounds like a sales pitch. When Luis has his final conversations with Rene about his compensation he sounds like a god subtly delivering instructions.
The three elements that make this film as dark and ominous as it is are Luis’ eyes, the music played in key scenes, and the reactions other characters have to Luis’ results. Even in the most terrifying moments of the film Luis does not blink. He stares wide eyed at the subject of his film and analyzes how to best record it. Luis is a blood thirsty machine who knows not only where his next paycheck will come from, but what it will cost him. The background music of some of the worst scenes Luis records ranges from optimistic to neutral. The viewer is made to feel the excitement and elation of Luis as he records scenes that naturally should make a normal person cringe.
Lastly and most importantly is the lack of consequences. While the film does have an antagonistic character, he matters little in the bigger picture of success or failure to the protagonist. Luis moves through the world freely. His worst recordings cause other characters to flinch, but immediately after ask for more. Police officers look at him with disgust and push him away, but they do not stop him. His actions are made to feel accepted. This reality gives the film a sickening edge where the viewer just feels uncomfortable at the end questioning themselves more than that actions of Luis.
Nightcrawler is made great by characters who you understand but don’t want to connect with. They draw you into their world which you slowly start to recognize is your own, When you next watch the news you will be forced to imagine yourself as the person filming the cringe-worthy shots and asking if it is all worth it.
8.8/10
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