A father experiences apocalyptic visions, which prompt him to build
a storm shelter in his backyard amidst concern from his loved ones. DRAMA
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Take Shelter (2011)Written and Directed by Jeff Nichols
Starring Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain, Shea Whigham, Tova Stewart, Katy Mixon, Robert Longstreet |
Take Shelter is a film that uses current social crises to fuel a film surrounded by mystery and dread. Still, despite an intriguing premise, it leaves a lot to be desired. It lacks a sense of direction and focus, plus it's a bit of a chore to get through. The film relies entirely on build-up, but we're never told exactly what it's building up to or why the main character has been chosen to receive these visions, if that is what they are. A little explanation goes a long way, especially with cerebral films like this.
Michael Shannon delivers a strong performance, as does Jessica Chastain, but they never get any real development. All we know is that he's a construction worker who suddenly starts dreaming of an apocalyptic storm and she's his wife who sells homemade goods at a flea market. They have a deaf daughter, whose ear surgery is often discussed but never relevant to the plot. I would say that the film's biggest issue is a lack of plotline convergence. There's a lot of things going on that never fit into the whole, and by the end we're left with more questions than we started with. I won't say Take Shelter was a bad film. It has a lot of strong potential that's poorly executed. There's barely any narrative structure, and it feels like a pretentious art film with a studio budget. After sitting through a two-hour movie, I like to feel like I watched a story unfold. With this film, it was more like being dropped into the middle of someone's life without any introductions while watching them possibly lose their mind. It definitely could've and should've been better. |