Rental of the Day: TAKE SHELTER

TITLE: Take Shelter

STARRING: Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain

ONE LINE SYNOPSIS: A man suffers from apocalyptic visions that disrupt his life and threaten to tear apart his family.

WHY YOU SHOULD SEE IT: If I had to choose a single reason why you should see this film it would be Michael Shannon. He first blew my mind as John Givings, the troubled realtor's son in Revolutionary Road. In Take Shelter, he plays Curtis LaForche, a man falling victim to horrific nightmares and visions of an impending apocalyptic storm. Curtis's mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia around his age, so he struggles to understand whether he too is suffering from the disorder, or if his visions are a warning of things to come. The pace of the film is slow, but the terror and urgency builds as he begins to lose a grip on reality. Shannon plays Curtis with subtlety at first, but his tension rises to a climax that made me sit up in my seat, leaning in closer to catch every expression, both hands clamped over my mouth. His performance will undoubtedly move you.

His wife is played by Jessica Chastain, whose name you may recognize if you caught one of the six films she was in last year, including The Help, The Debt and The Tree of Life. She is slated to be in just as many films this year. It is as if Hollywood has suddenly taken notice of how effortless she makes her craft seem, and this role is no exception. As Curtis's visions alienate him from everyone around him, she struggles to somehow hold it all together.

Writer and Director Jeff Nichols has created what many are rightfully calling an instant classic. It is beautifully shot and brilliantly acted. Despite the two hour running time for a dramatic film, it will grip you until the very last frame. The film won the Cannes Film Festival's 50th Critics' Week Grand Prix in 2011 and was acquired for distribution by Sony Pictures Classics.

WHO WILL LIKE IT:
-Fans of psychological or character dramas
-Psych101 students
-People who enjoy interpreting and debating symbolism in film

WHERE YOU CAN FIND IT: Redbox, Netflix (DVD only), Blockbuster (in-store and online)