NIGHTCRAWLER

Basically…

Lou Bloom (Jake Gyllanhaal) is a lowlife chancer who stumbles into a career as a cameraman. He films Los Angeles crime and mayhem by night and sells it to broadcasters for the breakfast news, going to increasingly greater lengths to catch the ‘money shot’.

In other words…

Donnie Darko gets down and dirty.

The main men and leading ladies…

Jake Gyllanhaal has played a lot of big roles but none of them have really stood out like this one. If the Oscars bypass this performance there’s something wrong the movie industry because this is by far his best yet.

In the chair…

Director and writer Dan Gilroy makes his debut in the chair with this original noir crime thriller. If this is just the start then hurry up and bring on the rest please.

So…?

Nightcrawler is both dark and gritty as it studies Lou as a character as much as it provides nocturnal drama on the streets of LA. It’s original, exciting and pushes the boundaries in terms of both Lou’s morals and the broadcasters’. Gyllanhaal is excellent at making your skin crawl and adding an edge of discomfort to the viewing. It’s visually slick and fast paced – blink and you’ll miss something - just like your average night around LA’s crime spots. Surely this has Oscar success written all over it?

Worth the money?

Go. What are you waiting for?