Movie Reviews for Following

Following

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Movie Reviews of Following

Movie Review: Wow...
Summary: 5 Stars

Movie Review: A Great Film Film!
Summary: 5 Stars

Following, Memento, and Insomnia...This guy already has some great credits under his arm.

Movie Review: A Must Have For Any Aspiring Filmaker
Summary: 5 Stars

Movie Review: great psycholigical thriller
Summary: 5 Stars

Movie Review: Add me to Chris Nolan's growing 'Following'
Summary: 4 Stars

Add Christopher Nolan's name to this list. Before making the critically lauded smash "Memento", he hunkered down and wrote an engrossing script, raised a minimal amount of capital, cast some amateur/non-actors, found some cheap black and white film, and took to the streets guerrilla-style to complete his first film. What we get is the engrossing neo-noir of "Following".

And we also get a kind of proto-"Memento". Nolan, in what some may call a gimmick, again utilizes an irregular story structure to tell the tale of a lonely man caught up in extraordinary circumstances. The story, complicated enough if it were told straight (more on that later) is divided into three acts. The trick is that all three acts are told simultaneously; a scene from one follows a scene from another, which follows a scene from the third. The effect is somewhat jarring: protagonist Bill (or is it Danny? Or, as the credits denote him, The Young Man) sometimes has long hair and a goatee, sometimes sports a short haircut and a clean suit, and sometimes shows the cuts and bruises from a brutal beating. All within consecutive scenes. Fear not, for there is a method to Nolan's madness. He does his best to play fair with the audience, to provide them with visual clues so they can tell where they are in the story. Nolan, as he later would show with "Memento", is a masterful puppeteer, controlling all the limbs of his story with skill and precision.

Populating the disordered order of "Following" is a small cast of unknown actors, many making their first and only screen appearances. Jeremy Theobald plays The Young Man (he also co-produces; the director's commentary track notes that 'Jerry' was responsible for location scouting, on top of playing the lead). He's got low-key appeal, essential for essaying a loner looking for any human contact he can muster. Bill has taken to picking out a random person in a crowd, and following them around, ostensibly to gather character information for his writing, but more likely in the hopes of creating an imaginary friend. When one such 'friend' catches him in the act, Theobald does a fantastic job of showing Bill's discomfort, and then his gradual easing into the situation. Cobb, the friend in question, is a hyper-confidant thief, played with slimy charm by Alex Haw. Haw is great at showing Cobb's malice, his untrustworthiness, as well as the plethora of reasons that draw Bill to him. He's got a toned-down Richard E. Grant quality about him, although less kinetic and manic. Lucy Russell, as The Blonde, is really nothing more than that. Russell does fine showing her femme fatale-ness, but really brings little else to the role, including the desirability that all the characters keep insisting she has.

"Following" is a quick (67 minutes) slice of urban isolation. You feel for Bill as he spirals down deeper and deeper into a web of intrigue. And the discerning audience member will appreciate having to pay attention to a plot that gives you all the clues you'll need, but never holds your hand. If you've done your homework, and been alert the whole time, the ending will leave you mouth agape.

NOTES ON THE DVD

The DVD is jam-packed with goodies, mounds more than a movie of this magnitude would normally deserve. I guess Nolan took every post-"Memento" opportunity to shed light on his little-seen first feature. I think it deserves all it gets.

Nolan's commentary track focuses on his knowledge that he'd never have any money to make this film, and how that knowledge affected everything from the script he wrote, to the way he lit the film, to the choice of using black and white, to the actors he used and they way they rehearsed, to the locations. It's a very thoughtful commentary, full of useful tidbits for other first time filmmakers. Nolan's monotone delivery can be somnolent at times, but he's so smart and precise about what he's saying you can easily overlook that and become engrossed in the content.

Using the alternate angle button on your DVD player allows the viewer to see the current page of Nolan's shooting script while the movie is running. It is interesting to see where changes were made, and to figure out why. Often budgetary restraints were the deciding factor, but some changes were made to tighten up and improve the storytelling.

And as a neat little toy for those with an insatiable curiosity, the DVD comes with a feature allowing you to restructure "Following" chronologically. Its main benefit is that it proves that the film's modular structure is not merely a gimmick, but amplifies the intensity and dynamic tension of the story.

"Following" can be a tough sell for some; its grainy (but gloriously shadow-intensive) cinematography and bare bones approach to acting and scenery are a far cry from big-budget Hollywood. But it is still an engrossing work, one that, like its younger sibling, rewards repeat viewings. I've seen it three times now, and am still amazed at the bang for his buck that Nolan achieved.