April 24th, 2020

The Underrated. Sometimes a movie sits with you but you feel like you are the only that has seen it. Maybe it was the marketing. Maybe the movie is just flat out weird. Sometimes, you also like something that just doesn't lay it all out there for you and is left up to interpretation.

Today, kicking off The Underrated series, is Midnight Special from 2016. Great performances, roadtrip vibe mixed uo with sci-fi elements and unresolved conflicts. It's all there, but at the same time I have not seen anything like it before either. The unexplained origin of the cult/family/group is as mysterious as you might think one would be and you are dropped into the chaos of a father, friend and son the run. Here, Jeff Nichols uses the dropped-in approach absolutely perfectly as the tactic creates unknowns, chaos and questions throughout. Come for the concept of the thriller, but stay for the multitude of great performances from Michael Shannon, Kirsten Dunst, Joel Edgerton and more.

​