Monday, February 2, 2015

Steampunk Granny reviews Take Shelter

                                                             
 
There are three things people learn right away about me. I have nine grandchildren who I love dearly. I’m a ghost investigator. I belong to the Zombie Squad and I’m prepared for any emergency be it “The Storm of the Century” or a zombie apocalypse. I love watching movies and television shows about surviving said apocalypse, but a few nights ago, I was surprised to find this little gem as I flipped through the cable guide looking for something good to watch.
                                                                      
Take Shelter is a 2011 film written and directed my Jeff Nichols and stars Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain. It begins with a young father having a series of strange dreams that foretell something horrible just over the horizon. I was hooked right away and decided to give this film a view, because I’ve also had warning dreams, and lately, they’ve been getting worse; more on that later.

Plot

Curtis LaForche (Michael Shannon) and his family live in Lagrange Ohio. He has a good job, but that doesn’t mean shit because the bills always seem more than the money coming in. His wife Samantha (Jessica Chastain) makes extra money by selling home crafted items at a flea market. Their daughter, Hannah (Tova Stewart) is deaf. Every penny they make is put aside to get Hannah her implants in order for her to hear. Curtis has a mom who was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. She’s been institutionalized for a while now, but Curtis is afraid that he may be exhibiting traits of schizophrenia.
                                                                  
Curtis is having dreams; bad dreams that have to do with a nasty storm that is coming his way. The rain that is coming will make people and animals violent. He begins having visions while awake which isn’t helping him with the job he so desperately needs to keep, but there might be a solution. Curtis has an old storm shelter in the back yard.
                                                                      
Curtis risks his marriage, job and friends by obsessing over this storm shelter. Even with the help of a counselor at the free clinic and medication, the visions keep coming. Curtis has stocked his storm shelter with enough supplies to last a few weeks. His storm shelter is now Zombie Ready. But due to some bad choices, Curtis loses his job and the financial support needed for his daughter’s surgery. His friend Dewart (Shea Whigham) finally gives up on Curtis after Curtis betrays him.

Conclusion

There is a storm, but it’s not the one that Curtis dreams of. That will come later. When Curtis is afraid to leave the storm shelter after the all clear message is sent out after a bad hurricane, Samantha gets him to see a psychiatrist. The doctor tells the couple that they should take a vacation and get away from the bomb shelter and, Curtis will also have to be admitted to a mental facility for a bit. Curtis goes on this vacation to save what’s left of his marriage. While at Myrtle Beach, Samantha realizes that maybe they should have stayed in that shelter. Please see the film. The acting, scenery and writing are excellent. This thriller was nominated for four Saturn Awards including Best Horror or Thriller Film and Best Actress for Chastain and Best Actor for Shannon and Best Writing for Nichols.
                                                               

This film struck a nerve with me. My friends and I, who are also clairvoyant, have been talking about what we’ve been sensing. There is something big coming, and no, it’s not the end of the world. I feel that people are finally waking up and realizing that for a very long time we’ve been fed a load of dog doo by organized religion and by our political leaders. The rich are getting richer and the poor are left to suffer this unbridled greed.
 My father was in his early nineties when he died. He was a smart man. He read all the newspapers even foreign ones. A few days before he died, he said, “I’ve been having these dreams. There is a bad storm coming. There is going to be a war between the rich and the poor in this country." I tried to change the subject, thinking it was the medications Fred was on for hospice, but in reality, he was clear minded on everything else; why not this.

This movie was great. Watch it. I’ll be busy checking out my storm shelter.

                                                               


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