Nightcrawler - Writing

Nightcrawler was an intriguing little film that didn't seem to get much notice. Well, other than an Oscar nomination for writing, that is. Many people feel Jake Gyllenhaal should have been nominated for his outstandingly creepy performance. Maybe they should have expanded that category this year to include both him and David Oyelwo from Selma. I heard a rumor that Jake never blinks in this film. That's not true but he does keep his eyes unnaturally wide and somehow manages to change the shape of his face to look like some sort of bizarro-Jake. He is almost as handsome as a regular Jake, but maybe also not human?

Gyllenhaal is the "nightcrawler", an entrepreneurial freelance news shooter who trolls for the darkest of footage he can capture on the night shift in order to make a buck and satisfy ratings. This film seems to defy categorizing. The psychopathy of the main character is almost enough to push it right into horror. The dude goes from creepy and off, to sinister, to downright evil as the tale unfolds. Descriptions of the film label it as neo-noir, which I won't argue with, but it misses the surprise factor that this film held for me.

I remember watching it and being about halfway through and thinking to myself, "This is a movie about this guy being a monster." Then he continues to be sort of nefarious and there was a music cue that suddenly called to mind Carly Simon singing as Melanie Griffith gets off the ferry with her hair done right (don't ask me how I make these associations) and I thought, "Holy crap! It's NOT about him being a monster. It's a straight up success story!" So I guess that is what Netflix should call it when they try really hard to invent new sub-genres in order to get my interest; Nightcrawler, a Despicable Success Story. A sort of how-to film for those psycho- and sociopaths out there looking to get ahead in the news business.

Whatever you call it, I loved the surprise and the unique perspective from this film, as well as the performances. I'm glad it got some recognition this year.