Movie Review: 'Midnight Special'
By Bill Wine
KYW Newsradio 1060
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- "You have no idea what you're dealing with, do you?"
So says one character to another in Midnight Special and he might as well be addressing us.
A dad and his son go on the run through Texas and Louisiana after the dad learns that his son has paranormal powers.
That's the premise of this scintillating science fiction thriller, but it doesn't begin to describe why Midnight Special is special.
This is one of those movies that you'll appreciate in inverse proportion to how much you know about it going in: the less you know, the more you'll enjoy.
And don't expect to know at any given time exactly where the narrative is going because you will not.
It's a contemporary sci-fi fable, also a road or chase flick of sorts. Think of it as a freshly observed genre hybrid, and an eerily suspenseful drama that offers a puzzle in the early going that writer-director Jeff Nichols takes his time revealing the solution to.
The extraordinary kid on the run -- wearing earmuffs and goggles, for some reason -- is an eight-year-old named Alton, played by Jaeden Lieberher, who can tune in to radios and satellites, and can emit intense rays of light from his eyes. But he could be paying a steep price for these newfound skills he's been "blessed with."
The grownups with him are his biological father, Roy, played by Michael Shannon, and Roy's best childhood buddy, Lucas, an ex-state trooper played by Joel Edgerton. And later they're joined by the boy's mother, Sarah, played by Kirsten Dunst, who accompanies them on their journey .
They're fleeing the FBI, the NSA (in the form of operative Adam Driver, who comes to bond with the boy), Homeland Security, and a dangerous religious cult (led by Sam Shepard) that sees Alton as a savior, while the government agencies suspect Alton of being either a foreign spy or an enemy alien. And perhaps a weapon as well.
This is the fourth film from Nichols (Take Shelter, Mud, Shotgun Stories), all involving Shannon, and the director takes an admirably and rewardingly restrained approach, doling out exposition gradually but naturally.
His film is imaginative and earnest, offering an ensemble of interesting, connected characters who maintain the courage of their convictions throughout.
What will divide audience members is the third act, no details of which will be divulged here, which will provide a fitting grand finale for some while it dishes out a level of implausibility that will undermine what has gone before for others.
Certain plot holes may distract, but at least until the late going, Midnight Special is a compelling, even gripping, occasionally downright spine-tingling thriller.
Nichols' ambitious script explores parental love and the nature of belief, mixes far-out fantasy with gritty reality, and finds a satisfying balance between action scenes and quiet, contemplative ones in this moody, atmospheric entertainment.
And although the influence of such earlier science fictions films as Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Starman and E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial are unmistakable, Nichols' screenplay never feels derivative.
As for the title song, it's only used over the final credits, but as the song says, the film tries to "shine her ever-loving light on me."
It comes mighty close.
The father-son bond being tested is the emotional core of the film, and Shannon gives us a grounded, intense, convincing performance as the loving, scared, protective dad.
So let's hit the road with 3 stars out of 4 for a stirring and haunting sci-fi adventure with a Twilight Zone aftertaste. At midnight or any other time, Midnight Special is special.
