Catalogus

Manhattan Nocturne

Misdaad, Thriller
Beschikbaar voor VOD: 25 augustus 2016
Regie: Brian DeCubellis
Cast: Adrien Brody (Midnight in Paris, The Pianist, The Darjeeling Limited), Yvonne Strahovski (Dexter, Killer Elite, The Handmaid's Tale), Jennifer Beals (Flashdance, The Book of Eli, Runaway Jury), Campbell Scott (The Amazing Spider-Man 1 & 2, The Exorcism of Emily Rose)

Porter Wren (Oscarwinnaar Adrien Brody) behoort tot een uitstervend ras. Als schandaalcolumnist grossiert hij in sappige moordverhalen, drama's en "waargebeurde" feiten. Aan het thuisfront speelt hij de toegewijde echtgenoot van Lisa (Jennifer Beals, The L Word) met wie hij twee jonge kinderen heeft. Maar wanneer de verleidelijke Caroline Crowley (Yvonne Strahovski, Dexter) zijn libido en nieuwsgierigheid prikkelt met de onopgeloste, bizarre moord op haar man, een beroemd cineast, raakt hij al snel verstrikt in een web van leugens en verraad. Wat begon als een opwindende, verboden affaire, ontaardt in een gruwelijke nachtmerrie waarbij hij alles dreigt te verliezen: zijn baan, zijn gezin en zelfs zijn leven...

Deze intrigerende filmbewerking van Colin Harrisons gelijknamige boekentip van de New York Times is een eigentijds film noirpareltje waarin seksuele obsessie en chantage de boventoon voeren.

Reviews
  • Nytimes.com: Adrien Brody is an actor who knows what he's good at. And in "Manhattan Night," a classic film noir set in contemporary New York, his character, Porter Wren, is a scuttling tabloid columnist ensnared in an elaborate story of deception, blackmail, murder and sexual duplicity. In its complexity and zest for evil, the plot rivals that of "Chinatown."
  • Hollywoodreporter.com: A largely enjoyable neo-noir.
  • Theguardian.com: Adrien Brody plays a crime columnist mixed up with a femme fatale in a steamy drama that manages to entertain.
  • AVClub.com: The most compelling character is an eccentric, extravagantly acclaimed film director, Simon Crowley (Campbell Scott), who is seen only in flashbacks tied to his habit of videotaping, sometimes surreptitiously, his encounters with strangers and loved ones alike. There's something disturbing and recognizably contemporary about Simon's DV fetish, and Scott, always a fascinating actor, has the stare of a true voyeur. In its best scenes, the film plays with the tension between its antagonist's insatiable need to transform real life into melodrama and its own relentless narrative gamesmanship. The script plays keep-away with the audience, and the mystery being withheld is so truly, luridly tantalizing that it's almost disappointing that the filmmakers give it up at all.
  • Screenspotlight.com: Brody has teamed with director/screenwriter Brian DeCubellis to make a movie that is spellbinding from the first frame and well-beyond its last. Manhattan Night may be labeled as film noire but to assign only one descriptive characterization to this movie is a misstep. Only a flourishing crowd of adjectives and adverbs will draw out the near perfection that is Manhattan Night. Movie lovers, feast your eyes on the macabre dance that is Manhattan Night and quench your appetites for a movie whose nose is always to the grindstone. Let Adrien Brody take you on a journey into the unknown.
  • Cutprint.film: Brody is one of the more interesting actors working today, and he gives the part his all, bringing an appropriate weariness and foolishness to his part as we watch him get suckered into one problem after another.
  • Azcentral.com: Modern-day film noir is an engrossing showcase for Brody and newbie writer-director Brian DeCubellis. it pulls you in its web, which gets increasingly dense and tangled. Brody's journo is an engaging presence, and the actor knows how to make the wisecracking dialogue snap.
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