Review of Nocturnal Animals (2016) by Nolan S — 29 Mar 2017

Nocturnal Animals might just be the best movie that I forgot to watch in 2016. Even though it came out last year I was able to go into this film completely blind. I had no idea what to expect, and this film surprised me in almost every scene. I have so much to say about this film so I am just going to start with its interesting opening scene.

I rented this movie on Xfinity and about a minute into the opening scene I had to pause the film to make sure I was watching the correct movie. That is how bizarre the opening scene is. Now into the plot, I do not want to spoil anything because this film is best experienced if you have no idea what it is about, but basically it is a story, within a story, within a story. This sounds confusing but as you begin to pick apart the various metaphors in the film, you will realize this style of storytelling was genius. On the surface Nocturnal Animals is a good film with great performances. When you dive into the story beneath the surface, that is when this film becomes a masterpiece.

The end was perfect, there is barley a word said in the last five minutes. Tom Ford lets the actors emotions seep through the frame to tell us what they are feeling. It was a brilliant ending to a captivating story. Nocturnal Animals is a phenomenal film that deserves to be praised for its interesting storytelling, great performances, and meaningful metaphors.