After being held back for almost a year, The Nest, the second film from director Sean Durkin, is finally available to Irish audiences.
This might be my favourite movie of the year so far, and absolutely will be in my Top Five when the year is over. Many complain (myself included ) about how this type of film is not made anymore - an adult drama with protagonists in their forties. The Nest, however, is exactly that.
It is also a brilliant film to talk about afterwards - the person I saw it with had an entirely different opinion and take on how the characters behaved. Great movies lead to great discussions.
The film centres around Rory and Alison, a married couple living in America in the 1980s. Rory is a shifty, grifter, businessman who has done well for himself despite coming from a poor background. His options are running out in the States so he convinces Alison and their kids to move to Britain with him. Thatcher’s Britain is in full flow and there is lots of money to be made. Alison is unsure but eventually agrees.
At first, The Nest seems to be going down a haunted house path when the couple move to an impossibly big house in Surrey, but it is not quite that. It is really a story about a man trying to keep one step ahead of what is coming to him. One lie leads to another leads to another and his life slowly begins to unravel.
Jude Law, as Rory, is excellent, and for the first time in a long time, reminded me of his terrific turn as Dickie Greenleaf in The Talented Mr Ripley. The film, however, belongs to Carrie Coon as Alison. One of the best actresses working today (check out her performance on TV show The Leftovers ). She has a real presence in this movie, incredibly confident, and vulnerable at the same time, she makes some interesting acting choices that pay off.
Like Durkan’s previous film Martha Marcy Mea Marlene (available on Disney+ ) it has an absolute sledgehammer ending. I loved that Durkin left it on a note you did not expect. I think I actually said “Wow” out-loud at the end. Now, I don’t want to deceive you, there’s no Sixth Sense or The Usual Suspects like twist, but it is an incredibly interesting ending that may divide opinions, but I loved it.
