The Machinist (2004)

Imsonia is one of the disorder that I hate more than anything and for people who always have this disorder, it's so difficult to get rid of it. My experience didn't sleep for one day has become a habit for myself and one of my friends has tried to not sleep for two days. But, what if you don't sleep for a year? That is one impossible thing to do but some people have this fatal insomnia disorder. Well, have you ever heard of "The Machinist" behind the making of this movie? Of course, I'm talking about Christian Bale who is doing an extreme diet in order to become a real character in this movie. Before he cast in "Batman Begins," Christian Bale went on a diet so that his weight dropped to 54 kg which was 82 kg. By just consuming a cup of coffee without sugar, a can of tuna, and an apple every day, Christian Bale seems a zombie when I watch this movie. In fact, the director Brad Anderson refused to Christian Bale who wanted to lose more weight again because it could endanger the actor's health. Even so, "The Machinist" shows an unusual story about a mental disorder of a person and psychology in depth, especially insomnia."The Machinist" actually isn't one of the psychological movies. Before this film, there were many films which discussed a depth psychology of a person such as "Fight Club," "Taxi Driver," "The Exorcist," "Insomnia," and etc. So, I think that Brad Anderson's "The Machinist" is an ordinary movie for myself as a film enthusiast with a heavy theme. But, wait a minute. "The Machinist" is actually not about the story of a person's intent from the beginning to the end but this film explores more about insomnia even as deep as possible into a more terrifying phase. Trevor Reznik, which Scott Kosar as the writer really loves Nine Inch Nails, represents a fatal insomnia disorder with various rage conflicts in his mind and even affect his own life. Trevor, who initially became someone who as a normal person for a long time became an anti-social person, even his friends were so worried about him who turned into a different person. In this film, I didn't really care about the character but I care more about Christian Bale with a very worrying totality. In fact, he is no longer a Christian Bale which we always see in every movie. But, because of the story which was shown in this film, Trevor became more hallucinated in his past, a hangman puzzle games posted in his refrigerator, another person of himself, to dilemmas that destroyed him from outside and inside. So, I'm not really discussing how the process of the main character until he cure his insomnia but this film shows a plot-twist which at least entertaining to watch.This film is also like a reality and dream tied into one. Kinda reminds me of "Paprika" which this movie came out in 2004 while "Paprika" came out in 2006. The answer to hallucinations seen as the true identity of Ivan is actually the viewers already know from the beginning. "The Machinist" also keeps a mystery that holds many other surprises to be witnessed by the viewers. Although there are a lot of movies which used concepts like this, what I feel from this film is that this film discusses more about one's psychology even to the dark side about one's personality, tension, hallucinations, mental breakdown, and etc. Because this film also used Fyodor Dostoevsky's "The Idiot" as the main reference, if you read the novel it might be familiar with the used of similar characters such as Aitana Sánchez-Gijón as Marie and Matthew Romero Moore as Nicholas. This film seems like an indie horror movie that shows a dark and strong atmosphere, an aura of isolation about someone. Kinda reminds me of "Taxi Driver" about a person's struggle for solitude against injustice from outside the zone. In addition, this movie cannot be separated from its mystery element. The viewers will guess more about Trevor's character with a few clues that will become a plot twist at the end to make it more curious and so focused on itself. A puzzle in life that follows from Trevor allows us to compile all the puzzles with some available clues. However, I see that the plot twist isn't too memorable because the viewers also know from the beginning of the circumstance about the character.In addition to the Christian Bale's extreme totality, we don't forget the other actors and actresses who also showed their best performance. Jennifer Jason Leigh as Stevie is a character who becomes a subplot for Trevor's character because their relationship is nothing more than a couple even though Stevie as a prostitute cocktail is nothing more than that too. Aitana Sanchez-Gijon as Marie is also no more than Stevie but is inversely proportional to the character. On the other hand, Trevor who likes to drink a cup of coffee and eat a slice of pie at the airport makes him more comfortable than being a quiet person. The two characters keep a guilty feeling about the clue investigated by Trevor so that it doesn't mind it at all if you didn't watch this movie yet. John Sharian as Ivan is a character who holds various mysteries and became one of the main points. As one that often bothered Trevor while he worked even caused Trevor to make an accident so that one of his co-workers lost his hand. With a twist ending that isn't too focused, "The Machinist" actually tells the story about a process and an exploration of a person's disorder. While looking for strong evidence of how the film would end, various clues will make you compile and interpret what the film is about."The Machinist" makes everyone assume about insomnia. What exactly is insomnia and why do we not always sleep at night? When for some didn't like their disorder and wanna to cure it and for some people also like to do things like that at night, "The Machinist" makes an interesting assumption about the exploration of an insomnia, about what is the importance of getting up in the morning without doing anything or stay up at night without doing anything. It's a contradiction between the two sides which some also stick to it. With a Christian Bale's totality did an extreme diet, "The Machinist" is a not-too-heavy movie to be appreciated but it interesting to be analyzed together.

'The Machinist (2004)' is an under-seen and underrated gem, a Hitchcockian psychological thriller based on a twisty, nuanced screenplay. It boasts a fantastic performance from Christian Bale and an excellent Hermann-esque score. It's one of the most compelling and unpredictable films in the genre. When the twists come, they feel earned and enhance the overall effect of the piece. Fantastic, unexpected stuff. 8/10

The Machinist is one of those films whose reviews do not reveal even half of the great things about the movie- because most reviews are spoiler-free, and if this movie is to be praised, spoilers must be involved. After watch 2/3 of the film, I said to myself, "what a great film! How come it not score 9 at IMDb when movies like Star Wars: A New Hope can get a 8.4?" Well, it must be the ending. The ending must have somehow ruined the film. It must be so! And it turns out that the ending is one of the best I have seen in a long while. I should give the film a 10, but since I am a nitpicking prick, I would say the color palette is way too extreme and it distracts the viewers in some scenes. Therefore, 1 point off, but still, what a great movie! The acting in this movie is phenomenal. Not to exaggerate, but Christian Bale is almost unsurpassable in this film. This is Godfather level acting. I don't even care about how he lost weight for the movie. The screen portrayal alone is enough to convince me that Bale is one of the best actors in this generation. He manages to be highly stylized and highly naturalistic at the same time, which is simply incredible. Ivan and other characters' performance were also great. Full mark for acting. And then we come to narrative. Oh god. The director is truly a fully-equipped, novel, and splendid storyteller! I have never had such thrill out of the storytelling since Momento, and fairly speaking, I think this is a better film than Momento. This is another one of those plots that would be more than boring if told in chronological order, but the director did it in such a beautiful way that it becomes so engrossingly intricate. Also full mark for story. In conclusion, this film definitely makes it into my must-watch list. It is very confusing to me why it is so underrated, and films like Star Wars: A New Hope can get more than one point higher rating.

I thought this movie was very well acted and that it had a very unique plot, but I wasn't the only one left guessing at the end. I didn't understand what really happened. But I still thought it was a good movie nonetheless. Why did I like this movie? It's difficult to explain, but it was all in the main character's mind where I tried to be in order to make sense of what was taking place or what had taken place. It didn't help me none though. I guess a good movie such as this doesn't need that much of a closure. Maybe many people understand this movie, but I was a bit lost. I'd watch it again to see what the heck I might have missed the first time, for sure. Good job on this movie! I was lost, but I liked it...kind of an odd thing to say, but it is what it is.