Let's make breakfast

Continuing my trip up The Guardian's Top 50 Films of 2021 

#29 : The Nest

Jude Law moves his family to a dark Surrey manor house in Sean Durkin’s 80s-set ghost story cum emotional parable that becomes a riveting neoliberal fever dream.

My opinion of Jude Law is a funny one - I've got nothing tangible to hold against the man, but he just kinda annoys me.  And the fact that I've no reason for this just annoys me more - which I know I can't blame on him, but it really doesn't help matters.  Looking through his filmography, he's been in a lot of well-regarded films, most of which I've not seen - apart from The Talented Mr Ripley, which he was actually very good in.  So, maybe this will be the film to convince me of his worth - but the fact that The Guardian describes it as a "riveting neoliberal fever dream" is not helping its case (even if, or probably because, I've no idea what that actually means).  Oh well - let's just see, shall we?  It does have Carrie Coon in it, which is a good sign (she's brilliant in The Leftovers, Gone Girl and Fargo - all of which are well worth watching if you've not seen them).

And it's immediately obvious that Jude's not exactly playing the most likeable of characters so I'm not sure I'm going to love him any more after this (and yes, I should be able to look past his character to admire the performance.  But I should be able to do a lot of things that turn out not to be the case).

Half an hour in, very little has actually happened - they've moved from the US to the UK to live in a big house in the country, but that's it.  No-one seems particularly happy with the situation and obviously something is going to turn it into an "emotional parable" but it's not entirely clear what. Jude and Carrie act the unhappy couple (Rory and Alison) pretty well, but you want it to go somewhere and it spends a lot of time not doing so.  

And, to be honest, it never really gets there - things just get steadily worse for them all and then it just ends.  I couldn't help but feel that I missed something, but the internet reviews don't seem to suggest so (although they all seem perfectly happy with the lack of an ending - some even praising it).  Having said all that, I did like the final two sentences of the film - but it didn't make up for all that went before it.  The film just didn't grab me - it took me quite a few goes to get through it. 

Overall, I'd say it's well filmed - the shots are composed well and the period features are impressive.  It is overly keen on facial close-ups - it all feels a bit actor-y at times.  And it loves the house - although I guess if they paid for it then they might as well use it. However, the horse burial scene is certainly something I've never seen in a film before - it's really quite a thing.  But I didn't need to see the horse unburial scene though...

It doesn't feel like the sort of film either Adeel Akhtar or Anne Reid would be in and it's not entirely clear what either of them bring to the proceedings - particularly Anne Reid who pops up as Rory's mum to basically just say she's not interested in him or his family (although I quite agree with her by the time she appears).  Additionally, the kids are not fully fleshed out characters - it's also completely unexplained why one of them is sent to the posh private school and one is sent to the local comp.  Part of me was thinking "one of them will turn out to be a ghost or something", but no - they're just kids.  It's also another film that uses the c word (which seems a very 2021 thing to do!) - in a very unpleasant toxic masculinity kinda way, but it got away with as being in character.

Overall, I just don't see the point to this film - it's an effective period piece but so little happens that you just don't care.  I'm also entirely unclear why The Guardian describe it as a ghost story - there are some spooky-ish bits to it, but that's going to happen if you move to a wood panelled mansion in the countryside.  I'm also no closer to understanding what a "riveting neoliberal fever dream" might be either.  And whilst I can appreciate that Jude does a good job on the acting front, it hasn't made me like him any more, I'm afraid.  But I still like Carrie though!

At the time of writing, the film is available to watch on Netflix but I can't really think why you'd bother.

#30 - This doesn't quite hit the mark for me
#28 - Well this didn't go where I was expecting