A Little Guilt Goes A Long Way (The Machinist (DVD))

Member Name: SRowlands

Product:	The Machinist (DVD)
Date:	12/01/06 (266 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Bales performance is excellent.

Disadvantages: The movie's dull and depressing.

Trevor Reznik is a man on the edge. Desperately underweight and pale, Reznik's so called life is more of a day to day existence.
He spends his days working as a machinist in a small engineering factory. His nights are spent between a prostitute, Stevie, who has genuine feelings and concern for him, and an airport coffee bar where he exchanges stories with Marie - the waitress. Sleep is not an option for him - he has not slept for over a year, hence his complexion and morbid existence.
Reznik becomes paranoid and begins to doubt his own sanity when strange notes appear on his fridge - some in the form of a game of "hangman". Each morning, an extra letter appears, and yet the landlady has not seen anyone hanging around the apartment. Who is leaving these notes ?


The atmosphere in the factory is tense. The foreman is power hungry to the point where he bullies his staff, and the workers themselves all seem to have shady backgrounds - none more so than that of "Ivan", a worker from the night shift.
During one shift, there is a terrible accident that pushes Reznik over the limits of his sanity, and into a journey to find out where reality ends and insanity begins…



The movie has a dark and tense atmosphere, and you never quite know what is going to happen next. There are many surreal and disturbing images in the film, including the scariest ghost train in the world which is enough to drive anyone insane !
As in many good drama thrillers, there are plenty of clues scattered throughout the movie to give an indication of the end - it's just a case of keeping your eyes open.


- The Cast -

Trevor Reznik is played by Christian Bale, most recently star of "Batman Returns". When he first appears on screen, you will be shocked by his appearance. Rather than looking like a Hollywood actor, he looks more like a refugee or prisoner of war. In order to play this role, Bale actually went down from 180lbs to 120lbs, reportedly eating just one tin of tuna and an apple a day. Despite losing 60lbs, he wanted to drop another twenty, but the studio feared that this would be too dangerous and forbid him to lose any more. As it was, this is believed to be a record amount of weight loss of any actor for a movie role, and one that will be hard to beat !
This weight loss shows Bale's dedication to the role, but would be worthless if the acting was poor. Fortunately, despite his weak state, Bale's acting abilities shine through and he plays the role amazingly well. The role requires a whole range of different traits, from paranoia to humor, and from a dull nothingness to some energetic scenes - all of which Bale handles in a believable way.
Reznik has few friends, but his closest are a prostitute played by Jennifer Jason Leigh, and the coffee bar hostess, portrayed by Aitana Sanchez-Gijon. Leigh is a much under-rated actress, and this role will prove that point. Throughout the movie, you will see the mental pressure Stevie is going through - trying to remain positive whilst selling her body to make a living. Her feelings for Reznik are drawn - he is her best client, but she is concerned for his obviously declining health. As she says in one point, "You can't die… you're my best client" !
Marie, the coffee hostess, provides not only hot black coffee, but a listening ear. The actress who plays her is fairly unknown in the west - she is Italian and has only been in European movies.
In the factory setting, Reznik's closest friend is Miller, played by Michael Ironside. Ironside rarely has a leading role in movies, but will probably be best known as Richter in "Total Recall", or as Ham Tyler in the TV mini-series, "V".

The movie is directed by Brad Anderson. Born in Connecticut, USA, in 1964, Brad Anderson has few directing credits to his name. He has directed episodes of hit US television programes, such as "Homicide: Life On The Street", "The Shield" and "The Wire". This movie captures the darkest images of these series and turns the atmosphere even darker.


- Overall Opinion -


This movie has a great cast, great acting, good direction and a very dark atmosphere. It should be a great movie..... but it's not ! The problem lies with the story - it's dull with a capital "D" ! Although there is a curiosity to find out what the film is about, when you do it's disappointing. You realize that you've spent two hours watching something with very little point. Sure, there are some great images in the film, but it doesn't compensate for the lack of interesting plot.
It's somewhat ironic that a film about a guy who hasn't slept in a year is more than likely to send you to sleep.

Amazingly, the film has been nominated, and won, several prestigious film awards, and come the Oscars next year, I think that this will get several mentions. I believe that Christian Bale would be a worthy recipient of Best Actor for all that he went through in preparation for this role, and for his acting in it.
There will be people who really enjoy this film, and indeed many reviews rave about it, but it's not for me, and I'd personally find it hard to recommend to other people.

Summary: An insight into the mind of a confused man.