Blu-ray Review: The Machinist

Trevor Reznik (Christian Bale) is literally a shell of the man he used to be. He has perpetual insomnia, which has drained the life from his body and most of the sanity from his mind. He is haunted by an unnerving, hidden guilt that leaves him at turns both exhausted and paranoid, which is a dangerous combination at his demanding job as a machine operator in a local factory. The one area of solace in his life comes from moments that he spends with two local women: Stevie (Jennifer Jason Leigh), a local prostitute he frequents; and Marie, a single mother working at the airport deli counter he visits late at night.

His lonely, but predictable, routine is interrupted when cryptic notes begin showing up in his apartment. This is soon followed by the arrival of a new worker named Ivan at the factory. The only problem is that no one else seems to have met Ivan except for Trevor. Trevor's paranoia and distraction by Ivan eventually leads him to accidentally cause a gruesome accident for a co-worker. But when a similar accident almost befalls Trevor, he begins to suspect that someone is after him. And he's desperately trying to figure out who and why before he wastes away permanently.

The Movie

The Machinist has two major and obvious distinctions going for it, as well as one working against it. Its most glaring characteristic is the horrifically graphic image of Christian Bale's weight loss for the role. Shedding over sixty pounds from his frame to achieve a skeletal, near-death weight, Bale's portrayal of tortured insomniac Trevor Reznik adds a shocking depth of reality to the character.

The second distinction for the film is its look, which juxtaposes an almost nouveau-thriller plot against an intentionally pastiche visual style. Both its location and time period are vague, and it has a marked avoidance of technology, to achieve this almost timeless quality. Obvious stylistic nods to suspense films from the '40s and '50s help underscore some of the dreamlike sections of the film as Trevor tries to unravel the nightmarish mysteries surrounding the spiraling deterioration of his physical and mental condition.

Article Author: David R Perry

Lost somewhere in the rolling hills of Tennessee, David R Perry can occasionally be found doing dark, unspeakable things to words. Printed words, spoken words, electronically mangled words... really any kind but twittered words.

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