“Nightcrawler”
Rotten Tomatoes: 95%
Matter Meter: 7/10
Release: 2014
Genre: Thriller
Available: Youtube/OnDemand
Review:
“Fear is simply an acronym for – False Evidence Appearing Real” – Lou Bloom
Nightcrawler is a mystery thriller starring Jake Gyllenhall as Lou Bloom, an eccentric, sociopathic, and unemployed petty-criminal looking to fast-track his career and “crawl” up the corporate ladder of America.
After witnessing a car accident and speaking with the so-called “news reporter” cameraman on scene (a guy with a handy-cam), Lou discovers that videotaping violence and crime on camera is extremely profitable.
“Nighcrawling” is not a lone sport though, so Lou hires Rick (Riz Ahmed) as his navigator/radio-moderator during their crawls. Rick is a genuine and well-intentioned character that is desperate to make money, and so he takes the measly $30 per ride.
Lou is a cringe-worthy character at times, but an extremely intelligent person, and he shoots his shot (pun intended) and makes money doing it. Gyllenhall was scary good playing a very creepy and diabolical business-oriented character.
The film represents and serves as a reminder to viewers that the media should not, and cannot always be trusted. Realistically all it takes to “fake news” is “a cellphone with a GPS, and a police radio”, as Lou notes in the film.
Lou also shares a close relationship with the news reporter he sells his vulgar and violent videos to, and by close relationship, I mean sexual blackmail.
Lou’s master plan in the film is to set up a crime between the police and a group of mob bosses so that he can tape it firsthand. It sort of reminded of the whole Jussie Smolett faking an oddly specific “racially-based” hit on himself.
“Nightcrawler” is a low-key solid-watch, and was nominated for best original screenplay at the 2014 Oscars.
The movie has solid replay value, and I suggest keeping an open-mind because the film gets dark at moments. Overall, I’m giving Nightcrawler seven out of ten bananas.
