The Infernal Machine

A thriller as slow-burn as debut writer / director Andrew Hunt's "The Infernal Machine" relies on its ending, which here is self-satisfied, contrived & implausible... wasting some terrific dark & moody set up work. Reclusive writer Guy Pearce (always solid) lives in isolation after his only novel inspired a mass-shooter 40yrs+ ago. Then SOMEONE starts sending him persistent 'fan mail'... but is it more sinister than that (duh)? Is it the jailed shooter Alex Pettyfor? Will Pearce get help from pretty cop Alice Eve (whose performance epitomises the whole movie: surprisingly good, til ultimately it ain't)? Worthy questions all, all sadly let down by that bloated ending. Shame... sigh.

A fascinating and mesmirizing story about a (one hit) worldfamous writer, living secluded in the desert, who slowly looses his mind, when he gets stalked by anonymous letters, whose content reveals secrets that are only known to him. Is he in danger? And if so, who might be after him?

The good: this story kept me on the edge of my seat the entire movie. I HAD to know how it all would end and (for a change) it is not a disappointing plot turn which reveals what's the secret to this story. I would advice the reviewers NOT to read the other spoiler reviews by the way, because NOT KNOWING THE PLOT is really part of the suspsense.

More good: another stellar acting performance by Guy Pearce, who is terrific at portraying characters who are on the edge, who struggle mentally. Physically Guy Pearce looks like he has come out of a tumble dryer. He is at his wit's end, addicted to alcohol, living as a recluse in the desert, paranoid who is after him. This actor is always a guarantee for a solid acting performance.

Even more good: everything from photography, to sound, to editing is of the highest quality. I LOVE it when a movie looks the part!

Not any bad? This is a slowburning story and however mesmirizing it was to me, in this day and age of instant satisfaction youtube videos that dont last longer than a minute, some viewers might not be in the mood for a long, spun out story, which only reveals it's secrets until the very end. And what secrets they are!

So glad I stumbled upon this movie, because this is one of the best mystery movies I have seen these past months. What a joy to watch! BRAVO!

Guy Pearce should easily win a best actor award for this. He gives it his all.

All the actors do. Maybe the director's strength is his ability to get good acting out of his actors?

He shot this wrong. There wasn't any gore or observed threat. The movie has real guts for a solid creepy horror movie but it pulled it's punch. This was more of a slap and not a hard one.

It would have been much shorter too. One seasoned producer would have made a major difference in this movie.

But Guy Pearce makes it work still. He's that good in this. The other actors try but he stands out. David Lynch should work with him.

Watch this without expectations of greatness.

I don't quite know why this didn't work, but it wasn't gripping, the story was messy and was clunky. The acting was really good and I love the idea, but disappointing sadly. Some interesting twist, so not a complete flop, and whoever wrote it was clearly intellectual, just a bit of a dullard, or maybe that was the director? Had to tell.

Not as scary as I was hoping, as the advert made it look awesome. Maybe there weren't enough characters in the film? Sorry I can't quite put my finger on what the issue is here, but there we go.

I'd love to read some other reviews of this, so get posting! .....

The Infernal Machine is a real shame as I do think there's a good film to be had in the core idea, but the film just feels like a real mess.

There are too many plot threads going on that don't blend together or connect very well. I think a lot of the character motivation is a bit convoluted which doesn't help either. The result is that this film feels very leggy and drags on quite a bit. This would be somewhat forgivable but the ending is quite bland.

Still, there are some positives. Guy Pearce gives a convincing lead performance and he anchors the film nicely. The middle act is also pretty pacey and exciting, just a shame it is sandwiched between two lethargic acts.

Overall a disappointing tale, but not without a few redeeming features. Worth a watch if you do enjoy a mystery thriller, but don't expect to be blown away.