Foxcatcher: A gritty and unsettling true story.

What a trio!

Bennett Miller's latest flick, a biographical drama film, Foxcatcher, is based on the disturbing events surrounding John "Eagle" du Pont and the infamous incident associated with him(no spoilers).John(Steve Carell) invites Mark Schultz(Channing Tatum) to move to his estate and help form a wrestling team for the 1988 Olympics.Mark takes the opportunity to step out of his brother--Dave's(played by Mark Ruffalo) shadow and make a name for himself. Soon,tensions arise and different circumstances lead to an unforeseen tragedy.

Before going into this movie,I heard someone say Steve Carell does not deserve the recognition that he's been getting and that all he did was "put on a nose and talk funny".Let me tell you, Steve Carell does an amazing job and it is definitely a career defining performance.You will resent this guy(the character,of course) and his dead eyed look. However, I do feel that the fact that Carell,a comedian, could nail such a role has actually taken the limelight off Channing Tatum,who in my opinion, delivers the best performance of the movie(he did not need a prosthetic nose to impress me). Mark Ruffalo is in this movie as well.He didn't really show up properly till-- maybe the last act, but when he did...

The lighting and music in this film really worked well for a story of this kind.It wasn't too dark and grey-ish and it wasn't too colorful and jolly neither.Miller does a good job at maintaining the balance and finding the right tone.Although,it's definitely not a movie for every sort of audience.

Now the storyline of Foxcatcher, I felt was, a bit weak.The actions of the characters and their motivations didn't always add up.But then I thought about it, and to be fair that's actually how it went down in real life.Nobody could've predicted what happened and things were unclear even after the episode unfolded. As a result, I could relate to the characters going through hardships but could not understand their actions.That might be a drawback for some of you.

Click here to watch "Foxcatcher Trailer" 

Also,this movie is terribly slow.You have to be patient. There are scenes in this film which will make you think what their  purpose was.And the answer would be-- to  let Steve,Channing,and Mark show us what they've got. Well,they did rise up to the challenge and mesmerize me with a heavy dose of good acting.

As someone who knows zilch about professional wrestling, I was hoping to see a bit more of them training and wrestling in competitions.That might have kept the interest of audiences who do not prefer slow paced movies.Then again,Foxcatcher isn't really about wrestling or wrestlers.It's an attempt to study these complex characters.And it's hard to truly say whether it succeeds or not.

In closing, Foxcatcher is a beautifully shot movie with stunning performances and a slow paced narrative.So I would suggest that you watch it if you appreciate good acting and don't mind being patient.For me, Foxcatcher was a good and entertaining movie.Just not one that I'd want to watch again.

So have you seen Foxcatcher?What did you think about?What movie should I review next?Comment below.