Rating of
3/4
Review: Side Effects
MikePA - wrote on 02/23/13
Side Effects is a grim and edgy film, tautly directed by Steven Soderbergh. What starts as a character study shockingly transcends into a diabolical mystery, with a lot of well-executed twists and turns that come off as unpredictable and appropriately shocking. Rooney Mara is insanely good as Emily, who is prescribed a drug by Dr. Banks (Jude Law) due to her depression and attempts at suicide, which may or may not have some serious side effects. I'm not quite sure how, but her performance here felt reminiscent to her dark and dedicated work in Fincher's The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Jude Law and Catherine Zeta-Jones provide memorable performances, whose characters get more and more interesting as the film progresses. Channing Tatum, who has been really impressing me lately, is also pretty good as Emily's husband. These well developed and consistently interesting characters keep you hooked to the story. If this is really Soderbergh's final film, he has ended his large filmography of distinctive efforts with a powerful punch. This is a well-made thriller, a film of great suspense and a complex narrative. It's sure to inspire detailed discussions as you exit the theater.
3/4
Recent Comments
Robyn - wrote on 03/02/13 at 01:28 PM CT
Side Effects Review comment
"Side Effects" begins as if it were a modern-day problem movie, but then transforms into a murder mystery--in which the question is not who did it--but why? It's just one of the jagged turns this movie takes on its road to resolution. The twists are many--changing the lanscape, that it makes it difficult to discuss with people who have yet to see it.
When Emily Taylor (Rooney Mara) is spotted by a friend of her husband's crying at a part. She immediately suggests a drug that once helped …
