Side Effects (2013)

User Review

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  TheMovieDiorama

  8 / 10

  Side Effects cured medical thrillers with a blood pumping syringe. Forget about 'Contagion' (which was entirely mediocre anyway) and even put aside 'Flatliners', trust in Steven Soderbergh to get the job done right (on his second attempt...). An entirely gripping, captivating and twisted plot that might just be his career best. A young woman, who's husband has just been released from prison, is prescribed a drug to cure her depression, but with unexpected side effects. Since its release, this has always been in the top echelon of thrillers in my opinion. Sure, the narrative slowly becomes convoluted and frequently drifts away from the prescription drug problem that it illustrates. However, it never fails to hypnotise me. A provocatively shot underrated gem that deftly balances its jeopardising characters that strangely feel both likeable and despised simultaneously. The screenplay is confidently written to make you doubt yourself, you think you've got one character sussed only for the story to then take a sharp turn in the opposite direction. It's almost Hitchcock-like, which to me is an admirable inspiration and one most thrillers should take notes from. Jude Law and Rooney Mara must be praised for their natural ability to entrance me. Much like medicine, I became dependant on them at delivering the story and they did so with ease. Newman's composition suited the clinical environment and surprisingly had me on edge even more. Soderbergh's direction and cinematography was sumptuous, loved how the background and foreground were always blurred and only the character speaking was in focus. A fantastic method to engage the viewer and ensure they are paying attention. Safe to say his experience paid off dearly. As I said, the plot does become slightly convoluted during the third act and plot holes do crop up occasionally. Yet, it's very rare for a thriller to consistently keep me engaged and for that I have to applaud Side Effects. A film that I will frequently revisit on an annual basis.

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