Take Shelter (****1/2)

Perhaps no movie released in 2011 was more carefully paced than Take Shelter, a little-seen but important film that addresses many issues so carefully that it never once feels laden with plot. Here, suspense is built so carefully that it would undoubtedly put Hitchcock in a state of unease. Slow moving but ever forward, the film works to understand the mind of a man who may be losing it, or perhaps has become simply misunderstood.

Michael Shannon stars as Curtis, husband to his wife Sam and father to a hearing-impaired child. His life plays out in the rural settings of nowhere America, and his life revolves around work and his family. Strange visions begin plaguing his life, filling his dreams, forcing him to seek medical help. He sees almost apocalyptic images of storms, attacks, and death, all involving the people most important to him in his life. That he loses sleep is a given, but the level of skill Shannon demonstrates as an actor playing out each moment is astonishing. Never before have I understood what it is like to wake up out of a night terror until seeing it perfectly captured in one small moment. Already an Oscar-nominee for Revolutionary Road, Michael Shannon undoubtedly is at his career-best.

Jessica Chastain, in one of her many brilliant 2011 roles, is humbling as the concerned wife who only cares for her family's well-being. Seeing her husband begin construction on a storm shelter in their backyard when other expenses seem more pertinent certainly raises issues, but never does she neglect her duties as a mother.

There are few scenes that will shock you, and perhaps many will find this film boring. The ending is ambiguous to say the least, and in the best way possible. Is it possible for the last moments of a film to completely change everything we have seen up until that point? Take Shelter most definitely fits the bill. A story of almost biblical proportions and ideas, here is a movie that will make you think and become actively involved. Unfairly denied mention at this year's Oscar ceremony, but no less potent for it. This is a film that will definitely have people talking for years to come.

(Awards potential: Best Actor (Shannon), Best Supporting Actress (Chastain), Best Original Screenplay, Best Original Score)