Good, slow-burning drama

Rating: 7/10 (11 December 2015)

Good, slow-burning drama.
Based on a true story, in 1987 a Olympic Gold Medal-winning wrestler, Mark Schultz (played by Channing Tatum), is approached by a billionaire, John Du Pont (played by Steve Carell). Du Pont offers to coach him and a group of other wrestlers with the next Olympics in mind. They will stay at his estate, Foxcatcher. Soon, Schultz's brother, David (played by Mark Ruffalo), is also brought onboard, as an assistant coach. However, Du Pont may be harbouring some personal issues and demons...
Intriguing drama though quite slow in its development. Not dull - there's always enough happening to keep you interested. You get the feeling that something is going to happen, but you don't know how calamitous it will be...
This said, it does come close to being too slow and there are are signs as to what the conclusion is going to be, just the victim(s) isn't certain. The slow pace also gives you time to think about where everything is going, and this is a bad thing, as you can foresee some of the conclusion.
Surprising casting, and it works! Mark Ruffalo was no surprise as David - intellectual, character-driven drama is his bread-and- butter. He put in a solid performance and got a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his efforts.
No, the surprises are the inclusion of Steve Carell and Channing Tatum. Carell tends to do comedies and his performance here as the very complex and creepy Du Pont is quite a departure for him. Good work by him though, for which he was rewarded with a Best Actor Oscar nomination.
Tatum usually stars in cheesy comedies, one-dimensional action movies and/or as eye-candy for females, so a serious drama is a leap for him too. He does get to play a slow-witted meathead here, so maybe not so much of a stretch for him. Good work in the role though.
Overall, intriguing though maybe a bit too drawn out. Still good though.