Effective film noir with a skeletal Bale

Rating: 7/10 (5 July 2005)

I thought the sight of an ultra skinny Tom Hanks in "Cast Away" was shocking enough but here in this film I don't think anyone can really prepare themselves for what they are about to see with this effort. The only thing that bothered me was that the weight loss really doesn't have much to do with the rest of the story although this is a well made film that (for the most part) keeps you guessing. Story is about a man named Trevor Reznik (Christian Bale) who works as a machinist but weighs somewhere around 120lbs and mutters that he hasn't slept in a whole year!
*****SPOILER ALERT*****
The skeletal Trevor keeps company with a prostitute named Stevie (Jennifer Jason-Leigh) and together they talk about going off and starting a new life but he also starts a relationship with a waitress named Marie (Aitana Sanchez-Gijon) who works at a diner at the airport. While at work Trevor encounters a stranger named Ivan (John Sharian) who claims he works another shift but nobody else has seen or heard of him. With his lack of sleep Trevor's paranoia starts to get the better of him while trying to figure out who exactly Ivan really is but once he finds out he starts to piece together a tragedy from his past.
Director Brad Anderson is also responsible for making the equally effective "Session 9" a few years back and both of these films share an incredibly dark atmosphere that seems to be Anderson's forte as a filmmaker. One doesn't really have to be a serious film buff to recognize this as being inspired by Alfred Hitchcock especially when viewers hear the "Vertigo" styled music score from Roque Banos but the story itself not only has elements from "Spellbound" and "Psycho" but "Memento" as well. Bale has emerged as one of the more interesting actors and roles like this command attention and show that he's not just a good looking guy who can star in films because of his genetics and his career will be interesting to watch. My real beef with this film is aimed at the fact that Bale lost about 60 odd pounds and has this freakish presence on screen but it's really never incorporated into the story except when Leigh mentions it in the beginning. I understand he's playing a character that's just a shell of who he once was but it seems a tad wasted and eventually becomes a non-issue. This is just nit picking and while I thought the conclusion was satisfactory without being overwhelming (like The Sixth Sense) this is still a well made film with a distinct noir feel to it and shows once again that Anderson is a director to watch.