The Nest

It was raining so I decided to take a chance on this film. I shouldn't have bothered about it. It was slow and boring. The disintegration of a yuppie marriage. That was it,nothing more and a total bore.

"The Nest" (2020 release from the UK; 106 min.) brings the story of Rory and his wife Allison and their kids Samantha (14) and Benjamin (10). As the movie opens, we are in New York and watch "a day in the life" of this family. Next morning, Rory has news: he has a great job opportunity in London (where he hails from). Allison reluctantly agrees, and soon the family arrives in the UK at their new place in Surrey, a massive 17th century mansion. It's not long before tension rises... At this point we are 15 min. into the film but to tell you more of the plot would spoil your viewing experience, you'll just have to see for yourself how it al plays out.

Couple of comments: this is the second feature-length film from writer-director Sean Durkin, who previously gave us the excellent "Martha Marcy May Marlene". Here he examines the consequences of uprooting a family from their familiar New York surroundings to a brand new and unfamiliar environment in the UK. This movie is plot-heavy and hence I'm not going to say a whole lot more, although I will say this: I found this movie classify, as it covers a number of different areas, although a generic 'family drama' could cover it. Also, the movie is set in the 1980s: there is reference to "President Reagan" on the radio, and 1980s music is a-plentiful including the Thompson Twins, the Cure, and many others. What I thought at the end of the film was this: "Money's Too Tight (To Mention)", the 1985 hit by Simply Red. Why? Just watch! Jude Law (as Rory) is excellent once again (he currently stars in the HBO mini-series "The Third Day"), and the same goes for Carrie Coon (for Allison). Beware: there are a few scenes in the movie involving horses that you may find difficult to stomach (I looked away).

"The Nest" premiered at this year's Sundance Film Festival (yea, pre-COVID-19) to good buzz. Then of course movie theaters shut down. The movie finally was recently released in select theaters, including my art-house theater here in Cincinnati, fully adhering to all COVID-19 protocols. Not that it mattered, as the Tuesday early evening screening where I saw this at was attended poorly: 2 people (including myself). If you are interested in a hard to classify 'family drama' or simple a fan of Jude Law or Carrie Coon, I'd readily suggest you check this out and draw your own conclusion.

Nicely played and it does have some interesting themes but it never makes the most of them, feeling dramatically inert for long periods. All of the tense scenes are in the trailer, the rest is a rather humdrum, if never quite boring, collection of family scenes. Saved from being a 5 by the final few reels.

Hoo boy, let the discussions flow.

It is rather lovely to soak in a well made piece of cinema that will no doubt elicit a bevy of experiences depending on the audience. "The Nest" has a basic mid-life family implosion crisis plot at it's core, but just how rotten is it?

Jude Law (Rory) is a slick talking investment advisor, living a comfortable New York life, with a pretty horse-training wife, and requisite two children. Yet he yearns for more. Soon the quartet are off to his England, to live in an isolated ancient mansion filled with too many rooms, a table so big it cannot leave the premises, and secret doors. Sounds like a horror movie, and in a sense, it is. Just not of the supernatural variety.

Law owns the screen as the flashy business stud, pushing all his chips into the middle of the table, dragging his reluctant dependents along for the ride. Carrie Coon (Allison) is his American match, willingly embracing her husband and his white lies until breaking point, then unleashing a vindictive, cruel yet understandable side in their escalating partnership.

Is this a family drama? An allegory for greed? A warning? A husband and wife coming to relationship climax?

A riveting turning point, actually one of many, has Allison beaming beside her man at a posh dinner party, as the boss welcomes him back to the English fold, revealing a devastating lie. Her smile doesn't break, but it is clear that there is trouble a foot. Much trouble. The husband and wife dance continues, but as finances spiral out of control, the tight solitary quartet starts to crack.

Every act is punctuated by a primo British new wave nugget from the likes of the Cure or Psychedelic Furs as a reminder we are in the eighties. It is a rather odd reminder, as the movie really doesn't depend on an era, other than referencing the greediness of the Reagan and Thatcher right uprising. It does elicit a weird alarm bell of nostalgia for anyone of that age, and perhaps was a bit of directorial self-indulgence. Not unwelcome mind you.

How and not why this plays out is the strength of this film. Blame is easy to hurl, but sometimes life is the problem.

A moody a piece of cinema, both visually and thematically, "The Nest" is a film that leaves an odd, bitter aftertaste, long after the main course is digested. A burner.

• hipCRANK

It's the 80's. Ambitious commodities trader Rory O'Hara (Jude Law) returns to London taking his wife Allison (Carrie Coon) and their two kids. He is pushing for a big deal with a big payout. He is spending beyond his means and moves the family again to a country mansion. It causes friction with his wife and exacerbating their money trouble.

I like the idea of this family descending into dysfunction. I find a lot of it very compelling. Law and Coon are delivering intriguing performances. Filmmaker Sean Durkin, who made Martha Marcy May Marlene, is trying to give this film a quiet, naturalistic feel. It does need to be a bit clearer with the beginning. It's just too slow until the money troubles begin. That really raises the intensity and the movie picks up steam. Quite frankly, the start bored me to the point of passing out and I had to start over again. The passive filmmaking style is not conducive to paying attention.