Destroyer. (15.)
Directed by Karyn Kusama.
Starring Nicole Kidman, Sebastian Stan, Toby Kebbell, Tatiana Maslany, Scoot McNairy and Bradley Whitford. 121 mins.
Kidman is an LA cop on the edge. No surprise there, all LA movie cops are on the edge, but few teeter quite as far as she does. Kidman stalks the harsh LA sunlight looking like the reanimated cadaver of 80s Meg Ryan, her face adorned with ageing makeup that makes her look as if she had sat under a sun lamp for way too long. She is often seen with a drink in her hand and a few more inside her, but the film is never explicit as to what indulgences these cosmetics are supposed to be indicative of. She is hunting out people from her past and in flashbacks we see her working undercover with her partner (Stan) infiltrating a gang, many years before.
The film is well acted, looks good and has a strong music score and if you buy into its damned-figure-going-through-purgatory narrative, its fierce commitment may be impressive. Otherwise, you may find it to be all a bit too much.
Directed by Karyn Kusama.
Starring Nicole Kidman, Sebastian Stan, Toby Kebbell, Tatiana Maslany, Scoot McNairy and Bradley Whitford. 121 mins.
Kidman is an LA cop on the edge. No surprise there, all LA movie cops are on the edge, but few teeter quite as far as she does. Kidman stalks the harsh LA sunlight looking like the reanimated cadaver of 80s Meg Ryan, her face adorned with ageing makeup that makes her look as if she had sat under a sun lamp for way too long. She is often seen with a drink in her hand and a few more inside her, but the film is never explicit as to what indulgences these cosmetics are supposed to be indicative of. She is hunting out people from her past and in flashbacks we see her working undercover with her partner (Stan) infiltrating a gang, many years before.
The film is well acted, looks good and has a strong music score and if you buy into its damned-figure-going-through-purgatory narrative, its fierce commitment may be impressive. Otherwise, you may find it to be all a bit too much.
