Cast: Guy Pearce, Robert Pattinson, Scoot McNairy, David Field, Anthony Hayes
Director: David Michôd
Running time: 1 hour and 42 minutes
It's 10 years after the collapse. The world has change dramatically. The film starts with Guy Pearce sitting alone, drinking, when his car gets stolen. So he decides to kidnap the only person who knows where the thieves are going, Robert Pattinson, and their wild journey begins. You may think what is so special about this car or what will Guy Pearce do to the people who took it or, even, what has happen to the world? But non of these questions matter. The question you need to ask is what will happen to Pearce and Pattinson's characters during this trip? And trust me you want to know the answer.
I really liked "The Rover" and one, and maybe the most important, reason is both Robert Pattinson as an actor and Rey as his character. Rey is so pathetic, lovable and sympathetic that I couldn't help but feel sorry for him and wish, with my whole heart, for him to "succeed" in the end. He is not portrayed as a saint but not as the devil, either. He may make wrong choices but he regrets them and carries with him the guilt of his decisions. All of that combined with the fact that he has some kind of mental disability made me root for him all the way to the end.
Not only did I love the character but I loved the acting. Robert Pattinson made Rey come to life with his constant subtle body movements and, also, the different emotions depicted on his face and way of talking. When his character was hyperactive due to his anxieties, I was hyperactive. When his character was sad because of the abandonment from his brother or the rejection from Guy Pearce, I was sad. He was amazing and I can't wait to see him in Cosmopolis.
It's time to talk about Eric and Rey's relationship, which is in my opinion, what the movie is all about. What you will learn early on is that Eric is tough and doesn't have any connections with anyone as far as we know. So when he meets Rey his sole purpose is to use him so that he can find his car and then, maybe, kill him, maybe not, it doesn't matter. However, during the period of their very long ride Rey, desperately, tries to connect with him. And at first Eric shot down every attempt Rey made but as time went on and as he saw more of his, borderline stupid, good nature Guy Pearce's character started to feel some kind of sympathy for Rey. I found the slow and very toned down way their relationship grew, wonderful to watch. it was very credible, honest and, even, heartwarming.
In addition to the relationship, another strength of The Rover is that it was believably developed. What I mean by that is that, even though, it was obvious that Guy Pearce was starting to see Robert Pattinson in a different, more friendly, maybe even more fatherly way it was never over the top. There were no great gestures on the part of Pearce and the only "movie big" action that happened was because of Robert Pattinson's character and it was logical to the situation at hand and to Rey's character in general. He, may, felt bad for Rey but he was, still, the guy who would shoot someone in cold blood, like he did in the beginning.
In my introduction of the movie I talked about questions. I thought the way to writer chose which questions to answer and which not to was exactly right. The point of the film wasn't what happened 10 years ago or how the world came to be this way. The point was the human connection between someone that had something happen to him which changed him and toughened him up and someone who felt a deep loneliness and desperation and had many insecurities. The lack of external information made their relationship the center of the movie and brought, even more, intensity to it.
!!!!!SPOILER ALERT!!!!! Finally, the last point I have to make about the strong elements of the movie involves a major spoiler, the end (so stop reading if you haven't watched The Rover yet). As much as I didn't want to see him die, I expected that Rey would, at a certain time in the movie, lose his life. And when I say I expected, I am refering to the feeling I had that this would be the case in real life. The very thing that made me love him, his kind-heart foolishness, would be what destroyed him in the end. I appreciate that despite the fact that it wasn't what a number of people would want to see (i.e. me) the screenwriter, still, chose to have it happen.
However, although The Rover had many strong traits, there were some elements of it that lowered my score. First and foremost the pacing was a little too loose for my taste, especially in the begging. I liked that it had a calmness and a unrushed rhythm in its storytelling but I thought it was too much in the first half of the film. It became tiring until it all came together in the second to third act.
And, at last, my final "complain" is about the last scene of the movie. I'll try not to spoil it for you, but I thought it came out of nowhere and had no real emotional residue, unlike most of the other scenes of the film. I understand that it was a way to show that Eric had some emotional substance and vulnerability in him, reinforcing the idea that he did, actually, grow to see Rey in a different light but I wish it had been conveyed in a different and more subtle way, keeping the tone synced with the rest of the movie.
In conclusion, I really enjoyed watching The rover and I recommend it to you, particularly if you like character based movies but beware that this is not a movie to watch when you are feeling tired and/or ready to go to bed.
Score: 74%
Tomatometer: 66%
m.
Courtesy of
A24
Roadshow Films
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