Cannes Movie Review: Take Shelter (2011)
A lot of mumbo-jumbo that leads up to very little
Photo: Sony Pictures Classics
Are you worried the end is coming? Do you suffer from a sense of anxiety based on the world around you? Are you doing anything about it or are you just going about your life on a day-to-day basis as if nothing's wrong? Whatever you're doing, stop it and listen up.
The cast includes Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain, Shea Whigham, Kathy Baker and Katy Mixon. For more information on this film including pictures, trailers and a detailed synopsis choose from the following menu.
Review
"Take Shelter" is a Sony Pictures Classics release, directed by Jeff Nichols and is rated R for some language. The running time is 2 hours 3 minutes.
Problem is, no matter what you think, this double-speak snoozer is too unsure of itself to make a case. Instead, it cops out by appeasing both sides of any argument on its way to being a transient-man's version of the Coen brothers' A Serious Man. To that point, it's a wonder Nichols didn't play Jefferson Airplane's "Somebody to Love" over the final scene to really hammer home his nearly invisible "real" message.
Take Shelter is the apocalyptic counterpart to Field of Dreams. However, instead of building a baseball field, Curtis is compelled to build an addition to his tornado shelter in his backyard after seeing visions of storms on the Ohio horizon and birds moving in unfamiliar patterns along with threatening dreams that are only getting worse.
Appearing to be in control of his faculties, the thought Curtis may be crazy doesn't really jibe as Nichols attempts to mix genres by turning this otherwise drama into an all-out thriller any time Curtis begins seeing visions. And while I didn't like the film I can say he's quite successful. There are definite moments of tension and intrigue and the filmmaking is quite good. The problem is the muddled story that never gets across a clear message and falls apart under closer examination.
Is Curtis going crazy? Well, the rule says crazy people don't know they're crazy and Curtis is trying to evaluate his level of schizophrenia. Is Curtis really seeing visions? Well, if he isn't crazy something has to account for the things he's seeing. However, perhaps I'm focusing on the wrong thing. Maybe the answer lies with Curtis' wife and daughter.
Seemingly, the only reason other problems in Curtis' life exist is to make his schizophrenic path a little bumpier. His daughter Hannah is deaf and scheduled to have cochlear implants, which means his costly new shelter isn't exactly a hit with his wife (Jessica Chastain). However, as the problems continue to mount for Curtis his wife continues to stand by him. Message anyone?
Perhaps this idea of family and a support system is what you'll take away from this film; the idea that no matter what problems come before us we all need a support system of some sort. No matter how much life gets us down, we can pull through as long as we have love. Again, I suggest you watch A Serious Man before exploring these themes here because Take Shelter takes these ingredients and mashes them into an unrecognizable stew that is just as contradicting to explore as it is boring to watch.
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Take Shelter wins Grand Prix at Cannes. I think you jumped the gun. Maybe you should re evaluate your critique. Take Shelter was amazing. Your review makes me not want to ever visit your site again.
That's fine. If you can't respect my opinion you probably shouldn't read it.
Mayene its Terrence Mallick and he's pissed off that Tree of Life got a B, I bet he's going to write on that review that it won the Palme D'or and you should re-evaluate your opinion…some people!
I think you missed the point unwilling to work with film. Spoiler alert!
The film ending is initially confusing but adding it up comes down on the side of love and empathy. The family is willing to extend itself to empathize with the reality of curtis' visions – a condition he inherited and cannot change in the same way they learn to sign and accept the daughter's reality of deafness. Sorry you were annoyed by this extraordinary brilliant work!
Didn't miss the point, just didn't accept, appreciate or enjoy the path it took attempting to get there.
At last an intelligent and discerning review. Thank you. We just saw it in Toronto; selected it based on promising 4 and 5 star reviews, but we're disappointed. Acting and casting was solid, but plot and script…too many holes, open questions, and long pauses to engage the audience. At least 4 left to theatre after an hour. They missed the lame ending. Sound track often too insistent and discordent. Score 6 out of 10 at most.
This film is one of the year's best. Come on, a grade of D? I agree with some of the other comments. I think you simply missed the whole point of the film. The ending can be two-tiered: literal or metaphorical. The acting is superb especially Shannon. He deserves a Best Actor nom. The pacing is deliberate, yes. however it's to serve the story it's telling. It has purpose. I recommend you see this again. It's one of those films that deserve repeated viewings.
I respectfully disagree Brad, I love your reviews and agree with you most of the time, but this one worked well. The only problem I had was the ending, which I thought was a bit of a cop out, and while I can understand the comparisons to A Serious Man (my favorite film of the past 5 years probably) I don't really think it's that similar. I'm reminded more of Signs, another movie that is suspenseful and brooding about a family man who just wants what's best for his family. Just my take.
Love the site though, always enjoy reading your reviews.
Just finished scrolling through some of your reviews, which were foreign to me. After working with Mr. Nichols and revisiting his current opus "TAKE SHELTER" for the second time, I must respectfully ignore your reviews and column you with the likes of Mr. Maltin, Shalit, White and the 8 year old that appears on "AT THE MOVIES". I respect that you have an opinion, but not your opinion. You seem to think you're above the work of filmmakers you choose to be sophomoric when dissecting. I feel like you may enter a film with the intentions of just sighting what you dislike about it. I'll leave you with the words the great Jim Jarmusch once passed on to me, "It's so easy to critique a film". I'll let you try to decipher the rest. Really hope you weren't invited to the screening of my picture this December.
Did Jarmusch also add "…and it's also hard to take criticism"? You do realize how hypocritical you sound right, not to mention pretentious? "I'll let you try to decipher the rest." Give me a break.
As for your film, Cove Road, I'd never heard of it so maybe I won't be invited, but I wish you the best of luck on your future endeavors.
Obviously, you haven't any grasp of the concept or the function of criticism. And don't you think it's rather sad to resort to name dropping in order to get on your little pedestal?
I just caught this tonight, and I'm scratching my head at how you could possibly give this film a D. I think it's probably one of the best films I've seen this year. It is obviously a matter of opinion, as every review is, so it's not like I'm judging you… I suppose whatever I connected to so strongly in this film were things that you didn't care much for.
To call this film 'boring' though, well, I don't know what you were watching. Take Shelter is slow paced, deliberately I feel, but how you can find that caliber of acting and direction boring is beyond me.
How something like this, which at least attempts to grip audiences, gets a lower rating than a film like Drive, which tries so desperately to be THAT cool film and has managed fooling most people into thinking it is, is beyond me.