'The Nest' Review
R: Language throughout, some sexuality, nudity, and teen partying
Runtime: 1 Hr and 47 Minutes
Production Companies: Nine Stories Productions, Bronx Moving Company
Distributor: IFC Films
Director: Sean Durkin
Writer: Sean Durkin
Cast: Jude Law, Carrie Coon, Charlie Shotwell, Oona Roche, Adeel Akhtar
Release Date: September 18, 2020
Rory (Jude Law), an ambitious entrepreneur and former commodities broker, persuades his American wife, Allison (Carrie Coon), and their children to leave the comforts of suburban America and return to his native England during the 1980s. Sensing an opportunity, Rory rejoins his former firm and leases a centuries-old country manor, with grounds for Allison’s horses and plans to build a stable. When the promise of a lucrative new beginning starts to unravel, the couple has to face the unwelcome truths lying beneath the surface of their marriage.
Writer/director Sean Durkin’s highly-anticipated sophomore feature The Nest has arrived. In this suspenseful drama, we follow a rich British patriarch who convinces his American family to move to a huge mansion in England. They each struggle in their own areas as they attempt to settle in, which causes a rift in the family dynamic.
Durkin does a terrific job laying out the groundwork, exhibiting the functionality of this family from the get-go to entice the viewer. They may be rich, but like most rich families presented in the media, they absolutely hate each other. What makes the film so engaging is the unspoken resentment the family has towards each other, which serves as the primary basis of the drama. The setting of this dark, vacant, gloomy mansion corresponds with and affects the family’s overall mood, along with the atmosphere of the film itself. This is the kind of mansion that Bruce Wayne himself would acquire because of how dark and rundown it is. The framework and cinematography elevate the viewers’ uneasiness through slow pans, making sure most shots are surrounded by dark corridors. It’s made to look and feel like a slow-burn horror flick, but what it accomplishes instead is being a slow-burn soap opera. At times the film feels like it’s too on-the-nose, but that’s no dealbreaker since it’s backed by a strong script and masterful performances.
What I love about Durkin’s screenplay is how the interactions within this family resemble those of toxic families in real life. Most of the dialogue exchanges are delivered with a dry, snarky attitude, especially between Rory and Allison. Jude Law and Carrie Coon deliver powerful, chilling performances as the married couple whose status is constantly on the rocks due to their vastly conflicting personalities. Rory is a greedy entrepreneur who cares more about his wealth than his family and Allison is trying her absolute damndest to hold everything else together while dealing with her distant 10-year-old son and rebellious teenage daughter. The film is set on Allison more than anyone else, so The Nest is basically her story. She has more issues on her plate to deal with and Carrie Coon friggin’ kills it. She dominates each scene with a powerful presence and subtle aggressiveness. Jude Law is Jude Law, so he’s obviously as stellar as always. He plays the hell out of Rory, the pig-headed, self-centered, short-fused blowhard.
While the film is entertaining, it’s not particularly memorable. It’s a fun thrill ride, but for someone who made the beloved feature that was Martha Marcy May Marlene, this is a bit of a downgrade. It unfortunately features a few frustrating cliches that bother me. I don’t want to get into every single cliche, but one of them is based on the relationship between Allison and her daughter Samantha. Every time Allison is being patient with her daughter, Samantha just says something cruel to her. The entire movie builds up to Allison’s reserved aggression, yet she doesn’t lash out at her bitchy, rebellious daughter. I wasn’t expecting Allison to go full Toni Collette in Hereditary, but damn, there should’ve been some comeuppance.
All in all, The Nest is a tense, nail-biting, cinematic drama with a hefty soap opera nature and grade-A performances to boot, which always keeps you on your toes.
