The Gift (2015) Reviews

• The movie you didn't know you had to see this summer

  moviewizguy2015-07-31

  Here's a surprise: The Gift is a mature thriller that's more complex and classy than the trailers suggest. I don't know what caused the marketing department to make the film look like such a second-rate, cheap, predictable thriller that somehow had gotten ahold of talented actors, but now we know the truth. As Joel Edgerton's directorial debut, it's impressive, considering the sense of craft going on behind the camera. The cinematography is gorgeous and the pacing is that of a slow burn, but it's never dull. The premise is also deceptively simple, turning more intricate and involving as the film progresses. Edgerton, who also wrote the screenplay, refuses to adhere to genre conventions, constantly subverting audience's expectations on how the story plays out. Red herrings, plot twists, shifting perspectives, and moral ambiguity ensue, but they never feel cheap. Like the best thrillers, The Gift evolves naturally and realistically. Edgerton and Rebecca Hall are great, but it is Jason Bateman who impresses. As a natural comedian actor, he plays one of his rare, serious roles to terrific effect. But I digress. You should go into this film with a clean slate, but know that it is a rare, intelligent thriller that doesn't cheat or spoonfeed its audience. And in that regard, Joel Edgerton has given us a gift, indeed.

• well wrapped

  Alanjackd2015-08-09

  Why as a seasoned movie addict and theatre visitor am I always amazed at the way the " Blockbusters" get all the press and gossip and fantastic movies like this slip through the net. Like last years immense " The Babadook ", this directional debut by Joel Egerton is a really good thriller and has had nowhere near the media coverage it deserves. It makes me so angry that the Marvel franchise gets rammed down our throats on TV and in fast food cafes and masterpieces slip through the net. Excellently directed and very well acted,this clever little well - wrapped gift is all we need to let us know that the proper movie making process is still alive and kicking. Very few special effects and perfect use of sound( or lack of it in some cases) with 1 or 2 shocks to keep us going,it carries a clear message of our past waiting to wreck our future. I think it cleverly slows pace half way through then wakes up in the last third.Grab it while you can guys cos this will just go after a week or 2.

• Tense, unsettling, and so well paced...

  Red_Identity2015-08-08

  Yeah, this was a lot of fun. I mean, the story reminds me of many others (most noticeably, Gone Girl and Side Effects) in that it's able to turn its story in more ways than one. As a very straight- forward thriller (the first half of the film) it works marvelously. Edgerton really has such a confident control of the pacing and the tone he wants the film to have, and when it switched direction, he's still able to keep the audience in their toes. What's most impressive is that this really is such a B-plot in many ways, but Edgerton goes further and really develops a thoughtful morality tale. Just when the film seems like it's going to go down the rabbit hole and not come back, he reveals another aspect of the story that puts it al in perspective. There are a few implausibilities (like someone else said, not sure if I can buy that she would be unaware of how he was for such a long time) but there are enough answers to such questions that are satisfactory and don't damage the film as a whole. The three leads are also so fantastic. Edgerton is perfect, and Bateman also really surprising. Who knew the lead from Arrested Development (although in retrospect his character never really stayed in caricature mode really) had this in him? He has some really dramatic scenes that blew me away. Rebecca Hall is such a great screen presence so her I'm not surprised about at all. She's just great. I think what's also really impressive about the film is that nothing comes out of nowhere. Every turn you sort of have an inkling, and you see all of the clues planted early. This may seem like a problem for many ("i totally saw that coming") but for storytelling, it's what works best in retrospect. The film at its core is really about the way our past can have consequences not just for us but for others, and the way it can also shape other people in ways you wouldn't expect. Simple, but effective.

• A taut thriller that never becomes too theatrical for its own good

  StevePulaski2015-08-07

  The only more underserved genre for moviegoers besides serious adult comedies/dramas or immersing fantasies are the classic thriller. The last truly marvelous, slick thriller that graced multiplexes nationwide was "Prisoners," an unnerving mystery revolving around the kidnapping of two young girls, with one father going to desperate lengths to find them. Since then, marginally passable films like "No Good Deed" have stumbled into theaters but never left the kind of imprint on audiences that has them genuinely consumed with fear and uncertainty thanks to the slickness of a film. Joel Edgerton's directorial debut "The Gift" is the first thriller that will leave an imprint on its viewers in a long time for more reasons than its rich cinematography and expertly paced narrative. It's the kind of film that gets one to look introspectively at the wrongs they've committed, in this case, in school, where perhaps a rumor you helped spread, or even started, went on to scar the victim for life. Perhaps if you helped spread said rumor, you've moved on, but what if the person you hurt hasn't forgotten the pain and torment your little white lie caused? "The Gift" examines the idea of an unburied hatchet by focusing on the young married couple of Simon and Robyn (Jason Bateman and Rebecca Hall). They've just moved into a beautiful, spacious home, with Simon finding tremendous success with the company he works for and Robyn coming to terms with her anxiety and her addiction to prescription medication. Hoping to start life a new, they are thrown for a loop when they meet a man named Gordon (nicknamed "Gordo," played by Edgerton) at a home-appliance store. Gordo is an old classmate of Simon, who barely recognizes him, yet still, upon even a brief conversation, recalls he's still four tires short of a car. Gordo repeatedly makes kind, yet invasive gestures towards Simon and Robyn, delivering wine, bringing fishes to fill their small pond out front, and stopping by while Robyn is home alone to keep her company. While Robyn sees a sensitive, somewhat lost soul in Gordo, Simon sees nothing but a creep - a persistent creep that has something to prove or uncover about him that Simon doesn't want revealed. Eventually, when Gordo's actions turn particularly personal and an apology on his part is warranted, Simon and Robyn receive a letter asking for "bygones to be bygones" for something that occurred in the past, to which only Robyn is left clueless. The performances here are unanimously strong, particularly from Bateman, who gives one of his only very serious roles to date here. Bateman even delivers a powerful monologue before his costar, Hall, who also does some good work as a troubled woman simply wanting peace of mind, concerning the "winners and losers" of America and how people are only held back by personal insecurities and events of the past because they choose to be. His delivery and conviction here is very strong, as he deadlocks his eyes into Hall and digs into her, himself, and everything that occurred in the past in one great scene. Edgerton, however, has the real challenging role - playing a guy who can look sweet and nimble, almost neighborly, but also a bit off and maybe even a little unstable. Edgerton's blank facial expressions find ways to be amiable, despite his behavior being increasingly troubling, almost too kind, and the character he creates for himself is one you struggle to find exactly what's bad about him when "too nice" doesn't seem to cut it. Yet Edgerton's craft here is something to really marvel at. Serving as the writer, director, and co-producer, "The Gift" is essentially his playground and, in turn, he creates a thrilling funhouse of Hitchcockian principles and truly absorbing fear. Drenched in dingy, saturated cinematography, casting a moody light on nearly every scene, "The Gift"'s atmosphere (thanks to cinematographer Eduard Grau) is a richly detailed one. The eeriness is very even and understated, and the fright aspect sneaks up on you like the potentially deeper meaning of a kind neighbor's gesture. This is a beautiful film in terms of its look and feel, constantly feeling like its toying with your emotions. Finally, there's the narrative structure, which is very unlike Hollywood. Unlike more conventional thrillers, like "No Good Deed," "The Gift" doesn't really have that incredulous, explosive moment, where everything you thought wouldn't happen does and the plausibility gets sacrificed for theatrics. Sure, there are some great twists, including one that goes further than I ever expected this film to go, but never is there that one moment where every ostensibly implausible thing occurs that effectively derails the entire project in terms of tone and pacing. "The Gift" remains consistent in creating a feeling of dread, even when the tables turn and the protagonist and antagonist lines are blurred. At the end of the day, however, Edgerton is the real star here. Proving himself a competent do-all man and not just a gimmicky actor-turned-director, he molds "The Gift" to his liking and asserts himself not only as a strong lover of thrillers and Hitchcockian principles but an actor who can also say, "sit back and watch" when he goes to do something and actually do it correctly.

• Joel Edgerton simply gave us one of the greatest thrillers of this year!

  condillon2015-08-08

  The Gift follows married couple Simon and Robyn who get a unexpected encounter from Gordo, an acquaintance from Simon's past. At first, Simon doesn't recognize Gordo, but after a troubling series of uninvited encounters and mysterious gifts, a horrifying secret emerges. Little do they know that their perfect lives are about to be thrown into a terrifying tailspin. This film standing as Joel Edgerton's directional debut, I must say is pretty impressive. This was a well crafted thriller put together by Edgerton, it wasn't as predictable as most thrillers are these days, it was simply one where our expectations keep getting pummeled to ground from how the story keeps transitioning. Everyone in this were simply astonishing, Edgerton played such a compelling creepy loner with so much aplomb, Hall played her role perfectly as a depressed woman that can't stress enough with all the fear and for Bateman, coming from his comedic standpoint, simply impressed as the husband with one troubling past. Round of applause to each and everyone! The film builds an effective sense of suspense and disbelief, you don't know what to believe from all the turn of events. The story was told so fluently with the suspense, is wasn't cheap or hasty but more chilling and grim when it came to the very well paced manner, it doesn't simply spoonfeed us with everything it's doing but really lets us take the turn for worst with each surprise hiding at each corner. The Gift was simply a shot in the dark when it let loose from the formulaic genre it was hanging off of. This nerve-wracking thriller maturely sends this main couple spiraling out of control as Edgerton simply starts to turn their life upside down by downgrading their relationship piece by piece. You can never tell who's the main protagonist, Is It Bateman? Is it Hall? Is It Edgerton? You can't really seem to tell until the surprise-filled ending that takes a wonderfully warped take on long-ranged karma. The Gift most certainly gave deliberate pacing, believable characters, and masterful understanding of cinematic suspense, Edgerton really proved that this film shouldn't be the last present we receive from him.