Good Silent and Gritty Drama

Rating: 8/10 (18 October 2015)

I have been a fan of Bennett Miller since first seeing Moneyball. The trailers and cast list for Foxcatcher gave me an interest in seeing it and learning that it was a passion project for Bennett Miller gave me high hopes for the film. This film is truly a great showcase of brilliant cinematography, production design, and acting. Every performance in the film is fantastic and although the media and academy awards have shined the spotlight on Steve Carrell and Mark Ruffalo I found this film to be the breakthrough for Channing Tatum's dramatic career. Tatum gives this career defining performance as a darkly troubled and tormented Olympic Athlete who aspires for greatness. The narrative arc of the film seems a bit messy due to the large gaps of time in between major scenes of character or plot development. There are several scenes in the film that seem irrelevant, the pressure that has built up throughout several major scenes has somewhat dissipated the emotional engagement of the audience by the time the climax has arrived. Many average movie-goers will not be able to sit through the entire duration of the film due to the extremely slow burn to the climax and scenes that drag in the middle of the film. Overall it is still a good film with a great creation of visual atmosphere with interesting sound design to create an eerie environment that is unique in modern cinema.