Review of Foxcatcher (2014) by Jesus L — 17 Mar 2015

So I just saw Foxcatcher and it w's pretty great. This is the first movie I've seen from Bennett Miller and I can't wait to see his other ones. Part of what I loved so much from this movie was how natural everything felt. There was not a single weak performance and the main cast were all great. Both Mark Ruffalo and Channing Tatum underwent training regimes for wrestling making those scenes very convincing. It was clear their was a lot of physical demand for their roles and both of them stood up to the plate. However, the one who steals the show is Steve Carell. I was always able to view his character as John du Pont and forgot he was being portrayed by Steve Carell.

What's so interesting about the story is the back and forth that the characters share. Quick tangent, don't look up anything about the story because there are spoilers. It's this odd relationship were we see this pleasant relationship grow to them despising each other. More importantly it's understandable where character motivation comes from. Going into this movie I understood that the movie was going to be slower paced and honestly I didn't mind. It's about feeling the same frustrating emotions are characters are going through. It helps with establishing this foreboding mood that something bad is doomed to happen. It was a very smart choice for the style the film makers were aiming for.

Another thing that made the mood so good was the understanding of how important silence is. It's as if the film makers are trying to present the audience the most objective experience they can. And yeah their are some differences between the real events and the movie but it's nothing too exaggerated. From what it looks like to me the film makers toned it down a bit. This is an adaptation, artistic license is fine as long as it isn't too deceitful from the truth which it wasn't.

There were a couple of issues I did have with the movie. A few of the lines felt scripted in what otherwise was a very well written movie. I also kind of wish they covered a little more on Mark's insecurities of being in his brother shadow. They do make a point remind it to us but a little more depth wouldn't hurt. Even though I love this movie I don't think I'll get more out of it from repeated viewing. It's just one of those things that can be understood from one viewing. However, it is a movie that's very well delivered and because of that makes me want to watch it again. Despite those issues overall this movie was very impressive. Unlike other sport movies that follow a cliché agenda this is a drama that happens to have a sport back drop. This is a movie I went into with high expectation and it surpassed them. I'm giving this one an 8/10.