Midnight Special by SHINYGOODGUY

CINEMA

Midnight Special

POSTED BY: SHINYGOODGUY
UPDATED: Thursday, August 18, 2016 18:03
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VIEWED: 4347
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Thursday, April 7, 2016 5:28 AM

Midnight Special

Let me start out by saying that writer/director Jeff Nichols has an uniquely
adept style of writing a script, and is equally gifted in the director's chair.
I liked how he presented the story (it reminded me of the storytelling style in
10 Cloverfield Lane, sparse dialogue, long on intrigue with a dash of Spielberg
for flavor. I was impressed by his pacing, shot selection and editing). Little is revealed as the audience is encouraged to peel back the layers of this onion
of a story.

Piece by piece we get tiny peeks at clues that reveal just a little bit more,
as we are dropped into the middle of an on-the-run pursuit of a young boy with special powers. He is being sought after by the authorities - FBI men-in-black
types, but also a type of religious cult. It's as if we are on the run as well,
as the man who is the "father" and a childhood friend, team up with the mother
to protect the child from those who would look to use and abuse those special powers.

It is tight, taught and brilliantly crafted. The relationship between father
and son is unique, to say the least, but there is genuine emotion and a sense
of protective and unconditional love. Michael Shannon does a solid job as the
father, and Kirsten Dunst is equal to the task. You can sense the desperation
in the 3 of them looking to keep the boy out of the clutches of the Feds, but
also too, away from the hands of the cult (who have their own agenda). I liked
the "you-are-there" feeling I got, and the frenetic pace of the chase. And I
kept wondering why is this boy so important? The Feds, the usual I thought -
military applications (somewhat cliche), and the Cult, the whole "end-of-days"
scenario (ditto in the cliche department), but that didn't bother me so much,
because of the tightness of the script, the thrill-a-second mystery that was
being spun in front of our eyes.

But something, I thought, was missing and I couldn't quite put my finger on it.
Anyway, I thought, it's a mystery I want to get to the bottom of. Even as a thousand questions popped into my head: Did the mother give birth to him or was
he found on the doorstep? Where dd he come from? Where were they going? Was this part of an alien invasion? Still though, my curiosity was piqued. I was on edge
until the very end and then.................NO SPOILERS!!!

But as a sci-fi geek, I was somewhat disappointed.

SGG

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Thursday, April 7, 2016 6:34 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

Was the Alliance trying to get him after he escaped The Institute?
Was his name River?

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Friday, April 8, 2016 5:44 AM

SHINYGOODGUY

No on both counts.

SGG

Quote:
Originally posted by JEWELSTAITEFAN:
Was the Alliance trying to get him after he escaped The Institute?
Was his name River?

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Wednesday, August 3, 2016 7:52 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

I finally found the DVD to rent. I did not opt for the HD version for my Home Theater, and I think it was fine for this film.
I found it to easily be one of the 10 best films of the year.

I found the explanation of "we have this world, and then..." to be intriguing and a mite confusing, but the result went well.

Less an action film, more a story/plot film. The evil Adam Driver from Star Wars took me a little to place.

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Wednesday, August 17, 2016 3:45 AM

SHINYGOODGUY

Yep, this is a good movie to rent for at home viewing. I really liked the pace and how they didn't just tell you about the boy, they showed you. I enjoyed the quirkiness of the movie and that I was a little confused too.
But it turned out to be so good.

SGG

Quote:
Originally posted by JEWELSTAITEFAN:
I finally found the DVD to rent. I did not opt for the HD version for my Home Theater, and I think it was fine for this film.
I found it to easily be one of the 10 best films of the year.

I found the explanation of "we have this world, and then..." to be intriguing and a mite confusing, but the result went well.

Less an action film, more a story/plot film. The evil Adam Driver from Star Wars took me a little to place.

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Wednesday, August 17, 2016 5:35 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

Quote:
Originally posted by SHINYGOODGUY:
Quote:
Originally posted by JEWELSTAITEFAN:
I finally found the DVD to rent. I did not opt for the HD version for my Home Theater, and I think it was fine for this film.
I found it to easily be one of the 10 best films of the year.

I found the explanation of "we have this world, and then..." to be intriguing and a mite confusing, but the result went well.

Less an action film, more a story/plot film. The evil Adam Driver from Star Wars took me a little to place.

Yep, this is a good movie to rent for at home viewing. I really liked the pace and how they didn't just tell you about the boy, they showed you. I enjoyed the quirkiness of the movie and that I was a little confused too.
But it turned out to be so good.

SGG

Like I implied in the second post of this thread, the reveal seemed like a copy of Firefly's reveal of River Tam.

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Wednesday, August 17, 2016 5:38 PM

DUN

nods head

I enjoyed the film,good story told in a relaxed and understated way
That's not to say it was slow paced.The soundtrack adds to film also.

You buy this ship, treat her proper, she'll be with you for the rest of your life.

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Thursday, August 18, 2016 6:03 PM

JEWELSTAITEFAN

Of those who have seen this film, does anybody consider it to NOT be in the top ten of the year?

This may be another bell weather film, the type I used to use to validate film reviews and reviewers.

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