Review of Take Shelter (2011) by Mjt — 22 Oct 2011
Wow is this movie overrated. There are some things to admire: the actors are all very good and the cinematography is outstanding. But, somehow it doesn't quite work. I'll point out one element that seems dishonest and safe: having the daughter be hearing-impaired means that the filmmaker doesn't have to really give her a point of view.
That is dishonest because of course she has emotions. She just sits like a sweet little cherub (and she is adorable). But, she is given no room to react to the craziness around her. Kids have personalities too.
Key scenes that show this: We get to see some of her spunk when she is feeding the dog some of her own breakfast in the opening scene...but later when her father gives the dog away we get no reaction from anyone--not even a mention of it! That shows me the filmmaker wasn't really interested in the real emotions of the family members.
The whole film felt designed to get good reviews, but it felt very manipulative to me.
This review of Take Shelter (2011) was written by Mjt on 22 Oct 2011.
Take Shelter has generally received very positive reviews.
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