Take Shelter

The ads and the trailer suggest that this is a movie about an imminent disaster that one man foresees but cannot convince others of. Actually Curtis, a tall working-class husband and father, spends almost no time trying to convince anyone that there is an impending disaster. He works heavy construction and is quite capable in that line. When horrific dreams and waking visions convince him that a natural disaster of biblical proportions is on the way, Curtis simply gets down to business. He takes out a loan, borrows work equipment and expands his meager storm shelter into a full-on survivalist den.But as Curtis' behavior becomes increasingly erratic he begins to suspect he may be slipping into madness since it's in his family. His mother was institutionalized when he was 10 with paranoid schizophrenia. He skims books from the library on mental disorders and seeks help from his doctor, who recommends a psychiatrist. But the psychiatrist is out of town and it's not doable so he settles for a therapist.Episodes that challenge Curtis' relationship with his wife Samantha and everyone else in his life keep adding up. I think most viewers know this plot line--good friends and benevolent employers stay with him as long as they can until it's just too much and he loses everything. And that is the plot but it happens in a believable way. And his wife actually does not take the child and leave him.Curtis waits forever before explaining to his Samantha why he has been doing the crazy doomsday prepping and so forth. He sensibly acknowledges the possibility that he might be going insane ('You know what I come from'). And his wife is sympathetic and understanding. She is also clear about what she needs to have happen to continue with him. Together they navigate the difficult time through sensitivity and communication.Why put the viewer through this? Why watch a good man lose his job and his friends? It's excruciating. But it's also interesting that Curtis is aware of why this is happening. In fact when he is laying an electrical cable to the shelter and senses his wife approaching from across the lawn he turns in her general direction but keeps his eyes to the ground and says "are you going to leave me?" This kind of intelligence in a movie about working class people without formal education but with plenty of experience and wisdom is appealing.Midway through it seems clear that this is either a movie about destruction of mental illness shown largely through the experience of the person, Curtis, who is going crazy, or somehow Curtis is not crazy. But before the significant events at the end, what is incredible is that it doesn't matter. So in fact it's a movie about a good family that faces a unique kind of difficulty and through intelligence and trust, and consultation with experts, overcomes these problems.

I just want to be clear that this review is coming from someone who doesn't `get' Michael Shannon. I don't think he's a good actor. He annoys me. His praised performances, including the Oscar nominated one, have always felt forced and obnoxious and awkward and quite frankly I've never liked him and usually wind up pointing my finger in his direction when explaining the `worst' part of a film.This film, and his performance inside of it, was amazing.`Take Shelter' seems to be a very divisive film. The ambiguity that laces so much of the film, especially Shannon's character Curtis, lies at the core of that division. You either embrace all that writer/director Jeff Nichols has to say here, or you label it a joke. Honestly, there are few films that say more about the modern horrors of the struggle to survive quite like `Take Shelter'. With a sharp sense of purpose, this film uses subtle imagery to pinpoint the root of Curtis's madness without every hitting you over the head with it.You may label my opinion a huge SPOILER, but I don't see it that way since I'm merely stating my interpretation of events, not their actual intent.For me, `Take Shelter' uses a looming storm to signify the pressing concern of financial instability. Using seeming subliminal shots, Nichols highlights the weight on Curtis's shoulders from his own financial responsibilities and the fact that, as each day passes the eventual collapse of all that he has is going to take over. His daughter has health issues that he must take care of. His wife works hard to preserve a level of sanity in the house, but you can see the weight around her eyes of simply worrying about her future and that of her family. Curtis sees so much on his plate and then, it all starts to unravel. Everyone around him feels like an enemy as he envisions an incoming storm that will devastate and destroy. Through dreams he experiences the pain of losing his daughter through odd means and this, for me, further implicates the idea that his floundering ability to provide for his family is what is aching at the core of Curtis's mental state.He's slowly going crazy.Michael Shannon is superb here. Friends of mine had likened his performance to that of Heath Ledger's in `Brokeback Mountain' (every word, a struggle) and I get that. It is so impeccably rendered. The scene where he opens the storm door alone is just "wow". You can see the relief etched with utter confusion all over his face.HOW CAN THIS NOT BE REAL?Jessica Chastain has had a banner year, and this is probably her finest performance. I mean, she finds every ounce of emotional compassions here and pushes them forward in the most honest of ways. Nichols works wonders with the air here, creating sharply intensified atmosphere that really keeps the viewer locked into what is going on. That ending is brilliant (I know, so many gripe there but seriously, the ambiguity isn't so hard to cut through it you think about it) and the visuals are impressive. Those storms are eerily reminiscent of our own personal demons.

Take Shelter is a very anxious and paranoid film that really puts inside the mind of the character and makes you feel and live an increasing sense of disorientation. The way all this unfolds is very interesting, because it relies a lot on an accurate and uncommon use of editing and sounds, mixed with a well calibrated scripted and perfectly measured acting.

I saw this in the a theatre and it affected me in a way no other movie ever has. The build up, the tension, the metaphor for the anxiety of the modern man facing the uncertainty of trying times is done in the most amazing way.It stays with you after you watch it. It's unnerving, it's brilliant.Michael Shannon makes the film, and delivers a brilliant performance.Absolutely reccomended.

Great film we all watched this one and all loved it. Kept you wanting to know what was going to happen next.

Great film, quick service.

Desde luego que es una película hipnótica, cuyo actor protagonista compone un Curtis de gran patetismo, pero no es apocalíptica, al menos en mi interpretación. Hay dos o tres posibles: 1-Al estilo Shyamalan: Curtis está cuerdo, posee unas facultades, desconocidas para él, que le han permitido prever una tormenta descomunal (están en Ohio, tierra, como todo el Medio Oeste, de frecuentes y destructores tornados, recordad que ya tenían un refugio). Ha desafiado la incomprensión y al final se demuestra su razón. No es que haya llegado el Apocalipsis, es una tormenta de enormes dimensiones. 2- Curtis está loco y al final su locura se extiende a su familia. Esto es ridículo médicamente, porque la esquizofrenia no se contagia, aunque un creador puede tomarse esa libertad. 3- La interpretación que suscribo: Curtis está enloqueciendo, la película es la historia de ese proceso, él mismo lo teme, su madre es esquizofrénica, consigue libros, está de acuerdo con ser puesto en tratamiento... La escena final es uno más de sus sueños, con una variación: los siete sueños anteriores fueron violentos, le atacaban su perro, su compañero, su mujer buscaba un cuchillo... ahora su familia está con él apoyándole y esto quizá significa algo para su curación (no soy psiquiatra). Recordemos que si se puede dar una definición de Curtis es "un hombre de familia". Además están en la playa (lejos del refugio, por cierto), lo que no se podían permitir al haber perdido Curtis su trabajo (aunque el médico lo recomendó: un artista deja varias posibilidades abiertas, no es definitivo). De este modo la película comenzaría con un sueño de lluvia aceitosa y terminaría con otro.Me encantan las películas "de locos". Suponen un desafío para todo gran actor y muchas veces son las mejores de su carrera (hacer de loco convincentemente no es fácil): Shutter Island, Black Swan, Spider, Repulsion, El club de la lucha, Images, Lilith, Tres mujeres o en el cine asiático Dos hermanas, Soy un cyborg, Marebito, Kotoko... figuran entre mis preferidas. No así Una mente maravillosa, producto que parece salido de la factoría Disney.Manuel González Ortiz