The Machinist was easily one of the most disturbing films I’ve seen in the last few years. Seeing Christian Bale nearly starve himself to death for a role (that went largely unrecognized) was unsettling enough, but the menacing, cerebral tale that followed him around was completely ominous. The plot was muddled by memories of Fight Club, but the mood, atmosphere, and acting left it free of the imitator stigma and allowed its place in the lore of cult classics. Four years later, director Brad Anderson has reemerged with his ode to suspense films of years past, Transsiberian.
Though it opens with a shot of a detective (Ben Kingsley) assessing a crime scene, Transsiberian most closely follows Jessie (Emily Mortimer) and Roy (Woody Harrelson). Jessie, a former alcoholic and all around mess, has settled down and married Roy, an aw-shux classic American who’s as charming as he is clueless. After doing some vague missionary work in Beijing, the couple have decided to extend their vacation to Moscow by boarding the illustrious Transsiberian railway. They wind up sharing a room with another couple, Carlos (Eduardo Noriega), an innocent-playing but clearly devious Spaniard, and Abby (Kate Mara), a hushed but friendly young American.
Conflict arrives when Jessie and Roy get separated at a train station. Carlos and Abby offer to keep Jessie company as they wait for Roy at the next stop, but Abby seemingly disappears and Jessie is left alone in the company of Carlos. From there the narrative spirals into abundant instances of peril, suspense, wrath, ultra violence, and deceit. Jessie winds up with a considerably large supply of heroin, which, as one might expect, is of great interest to Detective Grinko. What follows are numerous attempts to ditch, hide, or otherwise lie about the stash, which is plenty of fuel for the seemingly limitless amount of dramatic tension Transsiberian offers.
Kingsley and Harrelson are the names on the marquee, but Transsiberian is clearly Mortimer’s show. Her innocence disappears after she’s relieved of her husband, and watching her break down and succumb to her vices becomes a painful, though mesmerizing, course of events. She makes some bone headed moves, and you’ll be rooting for her to just tell the truth, but each of her actions, regardless of its questionable realism, is crafted in the name of creating a thrilling narrative. It’s a throwback to some of the Hitchcock and Noir thrillers of days past; realism is sacrificed in the name of creating a stirring opposition. Whether or not a woman of Jessie’s nature would be smart/dumb enough commit such acts in real life is of no concern, it’s all about thickening the plot.
It’s nearly impossible for an actor of Kingsley talent to not impress, and his role as a Grinko is no exception. This time out his intensity is masked by his relatively calm demeanor, but as the film progresses you start to notice that he’s boiling underneath. He’s not as menacing or maniacal as he was in, say, Sexy Beast, but the payoff for his slow burn performance in Transsiberian is every bit as intense as his most noted work.
Harrelson does a marvelous job of playing a character that I hate. The affectionate, entirely clueless fish-out-of-water American is a wonderfully accurate stereotype he plays to perfection. I hate him mucking up everyone’s plans or embarrassing himself, but a strong emotional response, regardless of its nature, is a sign of a properly constructed character. Noriega plays Carlos as a charmer who eventually devolves into pure slime, but he does it with believable grace and finesse. I found Mara’s performance as Abby to be the least believable and most convoluted of the cast, though she improves as the film marches toward it’s conclusion.
The film is shot against a seemingly endless backdrop of snow and winter, with plenty of time in train cars for good measure. The close quarters adds a sense of inescapable claustrophobia where as the frozen abyss seals of any chance of escape. The characters are usually bound to their given environment, which usually means there’s no place to hide. The 5.1 mix is sufficient, but the film offers few moments to wow anyone with the sound mix.
The extras are…nonexistent. Barring a few trailers, including an amazing look at Sukiyaki Western Django, this disc is completely bare bones. Bummer.
