Very good

Rating: Null/10 (16 February 2012)

More than just a showcase for Christian Bale's acting talent and frightening dedication to his work, The Machinist is a thriller that is truly atmospheric, and worth watching more than once.
I would be doing anyone who hasn't seen the film a disservice by explaining too much about the plot. Simply put, Bale's Trevor Reznik is a malnourished insomniac who gets increasingly paranoid. And boy, is he thin. A real-life mirror image of the eerie hangman doodles that pop up throughout the film, Bale's body makes for half of The Machinist's disturbing quality. The other half comes from Brad Anderson's direction. An atmosphere of unease and paranoia runs throughout pretty much every scene, and Anderson just nails it. It's confusing how relatively little attention he seems to have garnered after the release of this movie. His talent is undeniable.
The cast fit into their roles nicely, with Bale taking good material and doing amazing things with it in a performance second only to Bateman. Reznik's fatigue and subsequent disconnection from reality is often painfully convincing.
Perhaps the way the film piles disturbing event on top of disturbing event gets to be a bit too much after a while, but none of what is shown on screen is unnecessary or irrelevant. And although the ending isn't wholly unpredictable, the final revelation, and Reznik's reaction to it, is moving and rewarding. The ending, in which we see this broken-down shell of a person find some kind of peace, makes the long, grueling journey leading up to it worthwhile. An engaging film, well worth your time.