Great character study; ending a loser

Rating: 8/10 (3 November 2014)

Short and sweet: Jake Gyllenhaal was fantastic as an amoral character carving his own way in a really dark movie. His portrayal of Lou Bloom, an emotionless psychopath willing to do what needs to be done to make it in the bizarre world of "if it bleeds it leads" TV journalism, is chilling. What a world we live in and what kinds of people nighttime in a big city breeds. Riz Ahmed, as his partner in crime and Rene Russo as a TV producer are perfect collaborators. The director, however, should have ended the movie about 30 seconds earlier with Gyllenhaal hearing the parked police car radio broadcasting about a horrific crime scene and him speeding off in his car yet again in a perpetual race to be first. The end DID NOT fit the tone of the film. It felt more like the end of Ghostbusters. Really disappointing.