Foxcatcher

Starring: Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo, Sienna Miller, Vanessa Redgrave, Anthony Michael Hall, Guy Boyd, Jackson Frazer
Directed by: Bennett Miller
Rating: R
Genre: Drama, Sport
2014

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Two brothers (Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo) vying for Olympic gold in wrestling team with a wealthy sponsor (Steve Carell), whose odd behavior threatens their goals.

Review:
Tim: I have to admit, Foxcatcher is a film I've had a little trouble wrapping my mind around. I don't mean the story (maybe a few aspects here and there) or what Bennett Miller was trying to achieve. I'm talking about what I think and how I feel about the film. There's certainly things I loved about this movie, but there are a few troubling aspects as well. While this film was very well received (it was nominated for 5 Academy Awards), I don't think it quite reaches the upper echelon of 2014 films (I tend to agree with the Academy's decision to not actually award it a single Oscar). This is a very good film, but it's not quite great.

The most interesting aspect of the film is the portrayal of this true-life story. By the end of the film, I was fascinated by what happened. I immediately read up on the events online and felt a strong desire to get one of the several books that have been written about this. For a film to inspire that kind of fascination, it clearly did something well (although the real life events helped that a great deal). This is a crazy, hard-to-believe story and I immediately wanted to know more about the people who inspired it. This a meaty, thought-provoking film- that's it's biggest strength.

The movie is also helped by two really strong performances. The flashiest one is the Best Actor Academy Award nominated performance of Steve Carell. I love that Carell, a notable comedy actor, was cast in this unlikeable, odd, restrained, cold role. It's completely out of character, but Carell delivers this strange, chilling performance. I've read that some described his real life character as repellant, and Carell embodies this wonderfully. He's a fascinatingly flawed, sad character. Carell deserved the nomination and I loved seeing him in this role.

Mark Ruffalo was nominated for Best Supporting Actor and he does deliver a very solid performance. I loved his physical transformation for this film. It's not to the extent of the almost unrecognizable Carell, but his look and movements were completely altered. Ruffalo is a terrific actor and he deserves great credit for his interesting, layered performance of David Schultz. I felt like I could watch Ruffalo play this part for hours. The third big cast member is Channing Tatum. Now, Tatum has the physicality needed for the role, but he's clearly the weak link. I wouldn't say that he is bad, but he's giving everything he has to the role and still comes up significantly below Carell and Ruffalo. Tatum has certainly built a career for himself, but no one will ever mistake him for a great actor. When he's next to a great actor (Ruffalo) and another solid actor giving his career best performance (Carell), he just pales in comparison. The film was hurt a bit because Tatum is really the protagonist and I just wanted to spend more time with the other actors in the cast.

Now, Miller directs a slow burn of a movie. I'm generally okay with that, especially with the troubling, shocking conclusion to this film. The climax is chilling and unforgettable and was exceptionally well shot. Unfortunately, Miller doesn't quite have enough to keep us riveted for the 134 minute run time. I was never outright bored, but there were moments when I wished for more momentum in the story. The film would have been more compelling with a few more cuts. I also felt like Miller missed a few opportunities to explain things in the story. I still don't fully understand why Mark turned so quickly away from his mentor. Was it that he regretted the introduction to drugs? Was it du Pont bringing his older brother into Foxcatcher? Was it him blaming du Pont for disappointing finishes? Did he just finally realize how crazy and creepy du Pont was? Or, did something more sinister happen between them? I spent long stretches of the movie trying to figure out the motivation for Mark's change of heart. That was time that would have been better spent thinking about the events on screen, instead of wondering if I'd missed something. I'm not saying Miller needed to spell everything out, but a little more clarification would have been appreciated. I also think there were opportunities to really make us feel more for the characters. I felt a great deal for David at the end of the film, but I never felt a close connection to Mark. That might have been Tatum's fault, or it could have been some of Miller's. Still, the movie would have been better with a deeper emotional connection.

Don't get me wrong- I enjoyed Foxcatcher. Miller did a very good job with this movie and it's a story that will haunt me for a long, long time. However, the film just isn't compelling enough for me to consider it among the very best of the year. There's not much shame in that, but I did expect to like this movie a bit more than I did.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7.5



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