In Florida at the height of the GFC, Dennis Nash (Andrew Garfield) is a struggling contractor living with his mother Lynn (Laura Dern) and his young son Connor (Noah Lomax), until they are suddenly evicted and their house foreclosed. The man responsible for this is Rick Carver (Michael Shannon), a corrupt local real estate agent. After he lodges an unsuccessful court appeal to have the foreclosure overturned, Dennis reluctantly accepts a job offer with Carver in order to save his and his family's home. His new work consists of conducting the same evictions to other local residents that Carver just gave to the Nashes. As his contract progresses, Dennis finds Carver's attitude and tactics becoming more unsympathetic and ruthless by the day, until somebody is brutally murdered.
99 Homes was a darling of numerous film festivals in 2014 and even generated Oscar buzz, but I don't understand how. Going into it I was expecting a slow-paced drama and that's primarily what it is, which is fine, but I just the found the actual narrative, and the pacing, to be increasingly and highly monotonous. Director and co-writer Ramin Bahrani's approach here is, I think, very plodding and self-conscious where a little more assertiveness and immediacy wouldn't have hurt. It simply never grabbed me, thematically or artistically, and I was in my early 20s (roughly Dennis' age) during the GFC so I recall it well. I also think the visual approach was rather too glossy and refined for a crime drama set in suburbia.
Garfield does what he can with a somewhat stock young adult protagonist and Shannon never makes his villain too cartoonish, but the best performance is from Dern, who infuses Lynn with dignity and strength. The lack of a non-original soundtrack is a fresh touch that helps to not date the movie's focus, but I'm afraid for me those pros were in too short a supply to help it overcome the rest of the stylistic and storytelling approach applied to it. Were I at an auction for these 99 Homes, I wouldn't be among the highest bidders. 5/10.
99 Homes was a darling of numerous film festivals in 2014 and even generated Oscar buzz, but I don't understand how. Going into it I was expecting a slow-paced drama and that's primarily what it is, which is fine, but I just the found the actual narrative, and the pacing, to be increasingly and highly monotonous. Director and co-writer Ramin Bahrani's approach here is, I think, very plodding and self-conscious where a little more assertiveness and immediacy wouldn't have hurt. It simply never grabbed me, thematically or artistically, and I was in my early 20s (roughly Dennis' age) during the GFC so I recall it well. I also think the visual approach was rather too glossy and refined for a crime drama set in suburbia.
Garfield does what he can with a somewhat stock young adult protagonist and Shannon never makes his villain too cartoonish, but the best performance is from Dern, who infuses Lynn with dignity and strength. The lack of a non-original soundtrack is a fresh touch that helps to not date the movie's focus, but I'm afraid for me those pros were in too short a supply to help it overcome the rest of the stylistic and storytelling approach applied to it. Were I at an auction for these 99 Homes, I wouldn't be among the highest bidders. 5/10.
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