Music, Style & Culture

Take Shelter

Elegant, atmospheric and filled with genuine dread, Michael Shannon is exceptional.

Released in cinemas 25th November 2011.

Jeff Nichols reunites with his Shotgun Stories leading man Michael Shannon for this most unusual psychological thriller.

Shannon puts his innate intensity to good use as Curtis, an Ohio construction worker and loving family man. He begins to be plagued by dreams and visions of an apocalyptic storm that will wreak destruction in his small town. Losing his grip on reality, his work and home life begins to suffer as he prepares for the oncoming disaster by building an elaborate tornado shelter in his back yard.

An allegory for modern man during the financial downturn, Nichols' uncluttered and concise script focuses on the practicality of a family struggling with mental health issues, featuring simple, everyday problems that make it so relateable - health insurance, home loans, unemployment. The drama is expertly juxtaposed with the visions, stunningly filmed with masterful, subtle horror conventions. Like paranoid nightmares coming true, they are elegant, atmospheric and filled with genuine dread. Nichols frames these episodes like oil paintings, with every frame a work of art. Effects are kept to the bare minimum, simple but deadly effective: flocking birds, oily raindrops and stormy skies build fear, while violent nightmares manifest as physical pain.

However, it's the performances that stand out. Curtis is the ultimate everyman, albeit one portrayed at breaking point. He has valid reasons to be concerned about his waking nightmares, which ground the film in a reassuring realism. Shannon's performance is exceptional - he has a face that can express a hundred emotions (mainly negative ones), and it's put to good use in Take Shelter. He is entirely believable as a man, who while struggling with terror, blindly struggles to protect his loved ones. A performance that is unshowy and stoic, rooted in an environment with blue collar working men and stay-at-home mothers. When he does break, it's fleeting and genuinely shocking.

As Curtis' wife Samantha, Jessica Chastain matches Shannon for conviction, making something unique out of the dutiful wife role she's portrayed in several films in this insanely busy year. An expressive and sensitive actress, there hasn't been anyone this clearly at ease in front of the camera in quite some time, and equally, the camera worships her. There are many thrills to be found in Take Shelter, and one is the chance to watch two actors with such striking visages grace the screen together.

The conclusion of Curtis' ordeal is incredible, as it eschews any predictable convention, bringing to the fore the strength of the family unit, which includes engaging young Tova Stewart as their deaf daughter Hannah. It's a profoundly brave move for Nichols, considering his build-up, and one that marks Take Shelter as ambitious, determined filmmaking. The writer and director then throws us a breathtaking curveball for his final scene; a (divisive) masterstroke that ensures Take Shelter lingers.

Rating: 9/10