A truly well-crafted film with acting that deserves a standing ovation.

Rating: 10/10 (15 January 2015)

In terms of a story "Foxcatcher" (Miller 2014) doesn't really have a lot to work with at first glance. It's a story about a – in some or another way – down and out sports person who has to rise to the challenge, or not. These are stories that have been around the block with pretty much any sport you can think of, but "Foxcatcher" is not another one of those films. This 'straight forward' narrative is laced with character content making what could easily have been dull or boring scenes informative and engaging. The plot generally develops the way you expect it to, until the moment where what you should have seen coming catches you - and the lady somewhere behind you - off guard with a yelp. There are two elements of 'setup' for important things to come in this film and they are both done wonderfully. In retrospect you realize that the script and director were giving you a hint but in the moment of the scene there is no reason for you to suspect it; and that is how a setup is done correctly. As mentioned, the acting is praiseworthy and I fully support the freshly released 87th Academy Award nominations for Steve Carell (Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role) and Mark Ruffalo (Best Performance of an Actor in a Supporting Role). Both these actors performed well above what we've come to expect from them and that does not exclude Channing Tatum, who embodies the physicality of the screen character of Mark Schultz remarkable well. Besides the obvious credit going to the actors, Director Bennett Miller also deserves his nomination for the 'Best Achievement in Directing' Oscar as he created an environment and world that made everything believable. Not for one second did I question the location, the time, the characters, their responses – and there were some out of the ordinary responses - or the action(s) around their lives. Miller and his crew put so much attention in the detail without losing sight of the big picture which is remarkable (here's to hoping the 'Best Directing' award from the Cannes Film Festival is a predictor for the Oscars). The cinematography was clean, precise and functional. The framing of certain moments and scenes were powerful but the camera never drew attention to itself and its art form, which in the case of a dramatic film like "Foxcatcher" is a very good thing. The sound however, drew my attention, but in a good way. The quality of the audio work in this film is beyond impressive. They used silence like very few films do, they used music and scoring sparsely which made the moments where there was scoring more effective. As a technical whole I think there is little that could have been done to improve this film. Cinematographer, Greig Frasera and his team, along with the substantial sound department did great work. "Foxcatcher" is well rounded in every facet, dramatic, beautiful, engaging, and with a powerful, unexpected climatic moment; a worthwhile film experience.