There is much in “The Machinist” that is admirable, even if you don’t care for its “Twilight Zone” storyline. It is stylish and eerie and well-acted.
And yet I found this movie all but unwatchable. That’s because of a stunt pulled by actor Christian Bale, who plays the central character.
Bale plays a haunted man named Trevor Reznik (his name perhaps a deliberate echo of Nine Inch Nails gloom rocker Trent Reznor). Trevor hasn’t slept in a year, has no significant personal relationships, and slogs through his dismal job at a factory.
To play the role, the strapping Bale lost 60 pounds, taking himself down to 120 pounds. This is beyond Tom Hanks in “Cast Away,” who simply slimmed away the fat. Bale looks like an Auschwitz survivor, his hip bones sticking nearly through his skin, his ribs visible in detail.
He is a revolting sight. Anybody who looks like this should be in a hospital, and I found myself angry at the filmmakers for not taking the actor aside and insisting he eat some sandwiches. This is irresponsible.
It’s also distracting. I found it difficult to get into the plot when I was worried about the survival of the lead actor. It also seems like wasted effort. One is reminded of Laurence Olivier’s celebrated advice to Dustin Hoffman: “Why don’t you try acting, dear boy.”
The story has Trevor stumbling through a dreamlike haze, sharing rare moments of tenderness with a prostitute (Jennifer Jason Leigh) and a waitress (Aitana Sanchez-Gijon). He is befriended at work by a very strange man (John Sharian), who may or may not exist.
Director Brad Anderson works up a suitably ominous, oppressive atmosphere for this morbid tale. The music, with its spooky theremin mixed in, is also very clever.
Christian Bale has been a fine actor since his childhood starring role for Spielberg in “Empire of the Sun.” He was ingenious in “American Psycho” and he’ll next play Batman in a new superhero movie.
His presence is undeniably shivery in “The Machinist,” although it’s hard to detect an actual performance being given – Bale drags his bones from one scene to another, letting his physique do the talking. I sincerely hope nobody acknowledges this performance with any year-end awards, lest another actor try to top this grisly exercise.
“The Machinist” HH
Distracting: An eerie tale of a haunted man stumbling through a dreamlike state, all of which might be diverting were it not for the sickening sight of actor Christian Bale, who lost so much weight to play the lead role he resembles a concentration-camp survivor.
Rated: R rating is for language, violence, subject matter.
Now showing: tk
“The Machinist” HH
Distracting: An eerie tale of a haunted man stumbling through a dreamlike state, all of which might be diverting were it not for the sickening sight of actor Christian Bale, who lost so much weight to play the lead role he resembles a concentration-camp survivor.
Rated: R rating is for language, violence, subject matter.
Now showing: Uptown.
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