The Machinist

I got caught overnight in Brisbane (thank you Air Nuigini), and took the time to catch Christian Bale in the The Machinist. After being so impressed by his Batman Begins performance I had high hopes for this one. And I can report that he is equally impressive here as Trevor Reznik.

Which is lucky really. Because while this is a well made film, it's not necessarily an enjoyable one. It's a psycho-thriller with equally strong references to Fight Club, Memento and Kafka. It's a bleak industrial world in here, and I found myself drawn into Reznik's insomnia and paranoia (perhaps it's not a movie to see by yourself).

Its interesting to look back on three recent films aiming for that dark and bleak look - Revenge of the Sith is Hollywood CGI dark, Batman Begins is the cool and terrifying dark of film noir, and finally The Machinist gives us a guilt-laden, psychosis vision of darkness. And what's really scary is that I know which one holds closest to reality.

Not one for your Saturday afternoon off. Best served with a clean glass of water and quick phone call to some good friends.