Following (1999)
1999
R
69 Minutes
A struggling, unemployed young writer takes to following strangers around the streets of London, ostensibly to find inspiration for his new novel.
User Review
-
WHAT I LIKED: A debut directorial piece is a great place to go to see the seeds of interest and experimentation that lead to later work, and for Christopher Nolan's 'Following' one can definitely identify the roots of elements we got in 'Memento,' 'The Prestige,' and many other brilliant ventures of his. However often the issue with first features is that they lack finesse, which is why it's so surprising that this film is still so brilliantly polished, engaging and exciting to the nth degree.
Yes even at this early stage this brilliant director was already able to peg a properly ambitious narrative structure into a form that hooks you with its masterful characterisation and suspense-building without compromising on the understanding and unravelling of the story itself. That's no mean feat, and if we're honest, many great directors have never produced something as good as this, which not only goes to show what a thoroughly great film 'Following' is, but also why Nolan has been able to become one of the greatest directors working today with so few films under his belt.
WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: At this stage Nolan was only playing with bigger ideas, and that means that some elements of the script feel a little shoe-horned.
VERDICT: A first feature or not; 'Following' is a very exciting movie. The fact it is though makes it something rather remarkable and thoroughly brilliant overall.0 member like this review.
