Review: Side Effects

Review: Side Effects

It's been a very long time since a movie with no special effects, gunfights, laugh-out-loud comedy or superheroes has had the ability to grip an audience's attention like Side Effects. 

Acting as acclaimed director Steven Soderbergh's (the man behind Ocean's Eleven, Solaris and Magic Mike) last movie, Side Effects is a highly engaging, morally ambiguous thriller centred around the dependence of medication in America. No, it's not an addiction story - more a narrative masterpiece in which various seemingly unconnected plot threads become intertwined brilliantly. It's like the best non-comical Guy Ritchie movie that Guy Ritchie never made.

Perhaps the biggest twist in the first few moments before you've even got comfortable in your seat is that Channing Tatum can actually be a great actor when given the right material. He and Rooney Mara (who is unrecognisable from film to film) star as Martin and Emily, a successful couple in New York whose relationship takes a turn for the worse when Emily seemingly attempts to commit suicide. 

Dr. Jonathan Banks (Jude Law) prescribes a new anti-depressant for her as part of a paid trial, but the side effects of the drug soon become a danger to Emily and the people around her. Who is to blame - the drug, the doctor or Emily herself?

To disclose any further details would be an injustice to the intricate twists and turns of the plot, but it suffices to say that as the focus shifts towards Dr. Banks' desperation to clear his own name, the true nature of Side Effects remains a closely guarded secret right up to the very end of the movie. 

Soderbergh certainly does get the best results from his actors as well - Rooney Mara is quietly unsettling as Emily, while Channing Tatum is surprisingly heartfelt and emphatic as Martin. It would be easy to hate his character, as at the beginning of the movie he shows little remorse for his time in jail, but Tatum manages to give Martin a sense of likeability that wouldn't be possible with a less charismatic star. 

Still, this is really Jude Law's show. The Sherlock Holmes actor goes around the bend throughout the film as Dr. Banks faces the consequences of what he believed to be a decent thing to do, and without Law's grounded presence it's possible that the potentially far-fetched story could have gone off the rails. The actor excels in what is initially presumed to be a supporting role that slowly develops into far more.

The cinematography disturbs and disquiets in equal measure; as Side Effects opens with a bloodstained floor and an ambient soundtrack, we feel consistently on edge. Yet it's not the tension or grit that grabs the attention, it's the consistently ambiguous morality of the narrative. Whose side are we supposed to be on? Clearly, Dr Banks is the driving force but there's an inkling consistently driven into the back of our minds that there's always another twist round the corner.

What makes Side Effects so much of an excellent experience though is the fact that it starts one place and ends in completely different territory. The film occasionally takes pot-shots at the negativity behind some medical services (when asked why the England-born Dr Banks decided to work in the US, he replies that in Britain patients are simply seen as sick whereas overseas they are considered "getting better"), but the fact remains that Side Effects stays true to its wit and genius rather than making too much social commentary.

It doesn't feel rehashed either; despite Soderbergh claiming that his film-making career has come to an end, Side Effects feels more like a "here's what I can do" debut from a fresh director rather than a sentimental goodbye from an experienced one. 

Summary

If this truly is Steven Soderbergh's last movie then he's clocked out on a high. Stunning performances from its cast, particularly Rooney Mara and Jude Law, ensure that Side Effects is an unsettling and thrilling experience throughout every shocking twist and turn. In these times of superhero franchises, special effects driven fantasies and daft albeit enjoyable Seth Rogen-esque comedies, it's good to see that sharp, engaging dialogue can be just as thrilling as an on-screen gunfight. Side Effects is a masterpiece. See it.

10/10 - Amazing

See it if you liked: Fight Club (1999), Trust (2010), The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011)