hopscotchee: shea whigham score: 82 rating: R time: 121 minutes
yo!! yo!! yo!! let's get a little M-I-C-K-E-Y action in this joint!! bringing you a can of legit whoop-a$$ with twinsAF alumni, the murderous mickey shay, our budder, shea whigham, the talented and gorgeous, jessica chastain, and the director of previous hopscotch movie (midnight special) jeff nichols, that's a straight up aly and aj 'like whoa'. and even more of a 'whoa' is take shelter. if you have been searching and searching for that show or film during the pandemic that will truly get you sucked in and leave you shook, your wait is over!! yyyyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyy!!!!
the first set of majorprops(tm) go out to the prop department and set design (hehe, that pun never gets old). while we were watching - no, sorry, ingesting this intoxicatingly addicted film, we couldn't believe our eyes. the props were vintage af. the props were retro af. the props were nostalgic af. and when the purpose of the set design is to help the viewer transpose themself into the world they are viewing, there is no doubt that that was done, son!! these were southern trinkets to a 'T'. from the random knickknacks, that intentionally really have no essential use, placed around samatha and curtis' home to the literal tupperware, cups, pitchers, plates, and dishes that our grandma still has, we were properly blown away. that is 100% accuree there!! wow and well done!!
secondarily, majorprops(tm) go out next to the editing. although, there were some interesting choices made with the inconsistent cut in the most climatic bedroom scene (wow, that sounds saucy, sorry folks) with curtis' pillow and the weird close up butt shot in the dinner hall scene, this film's editing did have a lot to love about it. speaking particularly with the pacing of the story, there was a comfortable lull to it. granted this film came out in 2011 and is now 11 years old, this movie strikingly contrasted to today's rapid-paced action films. this one felt refreshingly slow, allowing a suitable build up of suspense and bonding with the family. another perk about the editing came from the satisfaction that the editor gave to the parallels between curtis, as he worked on and built the shelter, and samantha, as she set up and merchandised her booth at the market. one more revitalizing aspect to the edit was how scenes were introduced to the audience with establishing scenery shots instead of going straight into the scene, yet another thing that today's films lack use or proper use of.
last but not least, majorprops(tm) must be delivered to the gifted mind behind this flick, mr. jeff nichols. one must commend this man's brain for - not only crafting up a narrative like midnight special but - artfully inventing this very unique, clever, and surprising idea and concept. take shelter takes you on a journey of the mind, playing with your wits, and takes you on so many twists and turns, following (our fav) mickey shay as curtis. while all so intensely leaving you to (spoiler) decide if curtis' visions are premonitions or delusions. hashtag brilly!! being both the director and writer for this script, we give our majorprops(tm) to him for both his works, but specifically his screenwriting. the main thing that took our breath away was how we instantly could get the sense like the screenwriter properly thought out the plot and conflicts and twisty connections, which seems obvious and necessary but is sadly often forgotten about. exceptionally when (spoiler) there is the debate/talk around curtis having to go away for these said 'problematic' visions, connecting to his institutionalized mama. AH! and (spoiler) the climatic twist when the daughter signs 'storm', when we've already previously seen in the movie samantha/her mom teach her that!! AHAHAH!! that's what we call a truly fantastic ending.
overall, besides (spoiler) the sad decision curtis made to chain up and later get rid of their dog, take shelter is a wildly creative work that surrounds love and understanding. and, yes, obvi, obvi some of the effects and green screen don't hold up (this is 11 years old, no shade), but just you wait 'til the end. try to tell us that the effects got in the way of your jaw dropping. - didn't think so!!
-- thanks, shea budder xo
*(tm) markings in this review refer to the twinsaf invented phrase 'twin markings', and all (tm)s are attached to twinsaf ideas or inventions that are 'pending' a copyright.*