Under the Silver Lake

Under the Silver Lake

Starring Andrew Garfield, Riley Keough, Topher Grace, Callie Hernandez

Directed by David Robert Mitchell

The Story:
Sam (Andrew Garfield) is a jobless, aimless young man living in the Silver Lake area of Hollywood, and is about to be evicted from his apartment for not paying rent.  One day he sees new neighbor Sarah (Riley Keough) swimming in the pool, and becomes infatuated with her.  After they talk, she invites him to visit her the next day, but when he arrives he finds the apartment abandoned.  He learns that she and her roommates moved out unexpectedly, and sets out to find out what really happened - resulting in a dizzying, conspiracy-ridden trail through the seedy underbelly of Hollywood and, ultimately, our own conscious.

The Synopsis:
As someone who relishes in the joys of modern enjoyment (film, television, music), I found myself more and more becoming aware of the subliminal messages that many of these outlets employ, most notably in the form of music.  While attending church services, I would find myself getting involved in the music and feeling a sense of euphoria and peace that I ascribed coming from a higher power, but as I find myself becoming as enthralled with the "secular" music as well, learned that it was the music itself that moved me and not an omnipotent being.  "Under the Silver Lake" is a neo-noir throwback dramedy that focuses a lot on the conspiracies of music, movies, and pop culture, while also trying to uncover a disappearance, as well as attempting to decipher a mysterious killer of dogs, and as well providing an interesting look in the cultural underworld of Hollywood, while at the same time questioning the long-aged themes of religion and the afterlife.  There's more that the film tries to tell, and while it was ambitious, became too tedious to pay attention to - but that might be what the director had in mind the entire time.























The simplest way of describing the film is this: a nobody finds somebody and then that somebody disappears, so the nobody sets out to find what happened to that somebody.  While that glosses over about 95% of the rest of the film, that's the basic premise delivered.  The film was written and directed by David Robert Mitchell (who also gave us the critically acclaimed horror gem "It Follows"), and I can wholly appreciate something new, unique, and never been done before.  "Silver Lake" has all those aspects going for it, but ultimately became too bloated for its own good, and most disappointingly led to a subpar conclusion that makes you wonder what the point of everything was in the first place - but it was still one insane ride to get to that simplistic conclusion.

Andrew Garfield plays well the character of Sam, a know-nothing who doesn't have a job (yet is continually asked by everyone around him how his job is going), is about to be evicted, and can't hold down a steady girlfriend.  He meanders through the film in a gaze reminiscent of a sad, lost puppy dog (his often bushy hair adds a nice physical touch), and yet he also showcases a beautiful mind that's seeing conspiracies at every turn, and in turn draws us to find those same comparisons.

As the mystery grows on itself, Sam fears for his own life as he's hunted by some unseen force, which could also be in his head.  Or it could be the dog killer that's plaguing the town, or it could actually be some shady organization who doesn't want its secrets being found out - or all the above.  It's very hard to categorize this film or really review it on a visceral level, because there's so much to unpack that it'd take a long time to do it - and even then it might not do it justice.

The film's main deterrent is the lackluster conclusion, much like popping a long-gestating balloon.  You're with it as the balloon (the film) blows up more and more (including several twists, turns, and subplots), and become more and more excited as the balloon reaches critical mass (the last shocking reveal), but then it bursts with a quick pop and you're left as deflated as the aforementioned balloon.

The Summary:
While it was ambitious and wholly unique, "Under the Silver Lake" was dragged down by too many plots and inconsistencies that meandered in too many directions and went too long - but it was still a unique ride to say the least.

The Score: B+