Bale is superb as Trevor, able to not only convey the wasted person within, but to avoid making his physical appearance the only thing we care about or notice.
Comment
10/18/08
The Machinist (2004)
75
%
Tomatometer
How does the Tomatometer work 
Reviews Counted:131
Fresh:98
Rotten:33
Average Rating:6.6/10
Consensus: A suspenseful low-budget thriller where Christian Bale completely inhabits his role.
Synopsis: Christian Bale delivers one of cinema's most sacrificial performances in Brad Anderson's mesmerizing thriller. Written by Scott Kosar (2003's THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE), THE MACHINIST takes place... [More]
Starring: Christian Bale, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Aitana Sanchez-Gijon, Michael Ironside
Director: Brad Anderson
Reviews for The Machinist
1 - 20 (sorted by fresh rating; Australian critics are listed first)
Top CriticSome people will pick up the clues early in The Machinist and some won't. I got some, not all, but I remained unengaged throughout, largely because of the film's deliberateness, which feels like lack of passion.
06/10/05
Top CriticClick to read the article
06/08/05
Top CriticThough the film starts slowly, it unfolds irresistibly, thanks mainly to Bale's full-bodied, soulful performance.
10/22/04
A moody psychological thriller with a stunning performance by Christian Bale at its core.
11/18/04
It's like a film the Coen Brothers would have made, back when they still made good movies.
08/22/05
Christian Bale delivers one of the most astounding performances of the year in this exceptionally written psychological thriller. **
11/15/04
Bale's brilliance in the role lies not only in the fact that he starved himself for months but that he fully inhabits this wasted, paranoid man.
10/21/04
Christian Bale gives his best by giving less in this nightmare tale of a machinist who is one tool short of the full set.
03/26/05
Bale's performance has the emotional weight to substantiate this body-art spectacle, ranging from prickly self-righteousness through panicked self-doubt to morbid self-pity...
03/01/05
Though Bale deserves all the credit that can be heaped at his feet ... there is far more to this sinister psychological thriller than just exhibiting Bale's emaciated form.
12/02/04
Anderson does keep a fairly predictable, deeply depressing plot line engrossing for most of the way.
10/22/04
Anderson's use of lighting, editing, sound design, and score hit just the right nerve endings, creating a film that keeps turning over in your mental gears for days afterward.
06/20/05
Even in a time when weight gains and losses in the service of a role have become commonplace, Bale has accomplished an astonishing change.
10/15/04
Elegant and shatteringly creepy.
10/28/04
The secret to the appeal of The Machinist is director Brad Anderson's ability to sustain an off-balanced, discombobulated mood throughout the film.
11/23/04
An absorbing and eerie study of paranoia and psychological torment.
12/29/05
If grimly atmospheric studies in alienation are your cup of tea, you should find director Brad Anderson's dark brew especially tasty.
11/23/04
As flashbacks show Trevor at other moments, when his head is slightly less scrambled and his body less eaten away, the film is never not about process.
10/22/04
Director Brad Anderson is clearly going for more of a '70s character study vibe rather than that of a thriller, a decision which absolutely works.
09/12/04
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