Review of Wildlife (2018) by Tim J — 21 Jan 2019

My 3 cents.

I think it was disconcerting to have attractive charismatic movie stars playing people who are a little dopey with small frustrated lives. But given that premise, I loved watching the tiny details of how everything in their lives disintegrated bit by bit. He should've been squelching her passion instead forest fires and trying to stubbornly prove something about himself. There is a tough ambiguity in the fact that she became a real harpy as he was trying to do a good thing for the the wrong reasons. It definitely leaves the audience struggling for where their sympathies should lie. The kid is a little bit of a stand-in for the audience who is just as confused. It is also his coming-of-age story.

Bill Camp as the seducer is one of my favorite actors. He takes on big and small role in theater and film. I thought he was fabulous walking the edge between taking advantage of a situation and just being a complete asshole.

It's hard to relax in a movie where everybody is unlikable. But I loved acting, the silences, and the cinematography and the discomfort of inhabiting a world I don't know and having to judge these dubious characters w/o much guidance.

I prefer to squirm than to cheer; it's more like life.