Thoughts on the movie, 'Nightcrawler'. . .

On Saturday afternoon, we went to see the movie, 'Nightcrawler' the crime thriller written and directed by Dan Gilroy and starring Jake Gyllenhaal.

Movie poster for 'Nightcrawler'

'Nightcrawler' kind of got lost in the flood of mediocre horror movies released for Halloween.  But, believe me, this is not a typical Halloween chainsaw or Elm Street mayhem movie.

The movie is set in Los Angeles mostly at night and it is dominated by Gyllenhaal's jumpy, compelling performance as Lou Bloom, a loner who teaches himself to be a crime scene photo-journalist.  He starts by trading a stolen bicycle for a cheap video camera and a police scanner so he can get into the tabloid news business. 

Lou studies the methods and morals of modern business and adapts them to his enterprise -- business plan, internship opportunities, goal setting, market research, employee evaluations, positive reinforcement, product placement.  He gives new meaning to the phrase cutthroat competition and his approach to product improvement exceeds customer's expectations.

The results of Lou's efforts can be both extremely funny and excruciatingly horrible.  Jake Gyllenhaal gives a memorable,  energized performance that will leave you (but not him) breathless.