"Nightcrawler"(2014) Directed by Dan Gilroy #jakegyllenhaal #nightcrawler

Following week’s of anticipation and numerous viewings of the enticing trailer for Dan Gilroy’s debut feature film I am writing this brief appraisal mere minutes after leaving the darkness of my local picture house. But the key question: is Nightcrawler as good, as exciting and as bitingly reflective of the ghoulish nature of the media driven requirement for instant, rolling news journalism the trailer would have you believe? The immediate answer is almost, and not quite! Written and Directed by Dan Gilroy, the film is also an all round family affair with brothers John Gilroy (editing) and Tony Gilroy (Producer) as well as wife Rene Russo in a significant, and brilliantly played, leading role.

But to the film itself: Set in Los Angeles which from the film’s opening shot of a brightly lit skyline and an ominous full moon overhead we follow “Louis Bloom” (Jake Gyllenhaal) a low level petty thief desperate for work who chances upon a team of “nightcrawlers” or renegade, freelance camera journalists who follow the voluminous amount of crime within the city headed by “Joe Loder” (Bill Paxton). With varying teams ostensibly chasing the same crime(s) the competition in this underground culture is fierce, active and highly immediate with large bounties on offer to the crew’s who produce not only the best coverage of an accident, altercation or bloody shooting but who can provide this to the rivalling news networks within the city at a moment’s notice. Whilst this is the obvious back story to the film itself, what is immediately apparent is that Bloom is intoxicated into this world, watching, learning and taking everything in as he makes his tentative steps from rogue thief into being a nightcrawler himself. But what is also immediately apparent is first time Director Gilroy’s use of extreme close ups on Bloom and especially his eyes as it certainly gives us a window into his tainted soul but it also conveys his every expression, desire and need to be in this world and his determination to do any and everything to rise within it.

The brief opening paragraphs above are taken from my spoiler free review of "Nightcrawler" I originally penned and published in 2014 before transferring to my Medium blog site on 10th December 2021 and which can be read in full and for free (please also consider subscribing for free too!) via my Substack blog site and the article itself linked immediately below:

https://ramblingmusings666.substack.com/p/nightcrawler-by-dan-gilroy-1329310bfc1a

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