{"id":1337,"date":"2013-05-08T19:46:49","date_gmt":"2013-05-08T23:46:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/~reviewing\/?page_id=1337"},"modified":"2013-05-08T19:46:49","modified_gmt":"2013-05-08T23:46:49","slug":"side-effects-thrills-and-excites","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reviewing\/?page_id=1337","title":{"rendered":"‘Side Effects’ thrills and excites"},"content":{"rendered":"

Posted May 8, 2013<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

By HADLEY JORDAN<\/p>\n

We\u2019ve all seen the ads for anti-depression medication; the sad woman sitting alone looking forlorn who starts taking a pill.\u00a0 All of a sudden she\u2019s wearing colors and laughing and going out shopping with her friends while the narrator speeds through the scary side effects that no one pays attention to.<\/p>\n

The pharmaceutical thriller “Side Effects” explores the dangerous possibilities of antidepressant medication as you follow the story of a woman whose world falls apart after she begins taking one of these drugs.<\/p>\n

Steven Soderbergh\u2019s latest film “Side Effects” is perfect for anyone who enjoys a darkly themed psychological thriller with numerous plot twists and turns. Soderbergh\u2019s cinematography is slightly reminiscent of an antidepressant commercial, most of the scenes reflecting the doom and gloom apparent in a dismal state.<\/p>\n

Though filmed in New York City, Soderbergh\u2019s style of editing and filming portrays the city as distressing and bleak.\u00a0 The muted colors and carefully controlled lighting help evoke the dreary and uncomfortable mood throughout the movie, enhanced even more so by the accompanying music.<\/p>\n

The haunting score written by Thomas Newman sets the eerie tone of the movie from the very beginning.\u00a0 It mimics the style of music played in antidepressant medication commercials before the character begins to take the medicine and they are solemn and in a depressing fog.\u00a0 The music continues throughout the movie as an underlying layer that helps perpetuate the melancholic mood of the movie.<\/p>\n

The plot has many twists and turns that keep the audience guessing throughout the whole movie.\u00a0 The movie is about a woman named Emily (Rooney Mara) who is dealing with depression after her husband (Channing Tatum) returns from spending four years in prison for insider trading.<\/p>\n

Though he promises her soon they will be on top of things again, Emily seems distant and somber.\u00a0 She begins to seek psychiatric help for her depression after she made a suicide attempt. Her psychiatrist, Dr. Jonathan Banks (Jude Law), gives her a new antidepressant called Ablixa that he is being paid to study.<\/p>\n

Ablixa, supposedly a miracle drug, begins to cause some serious side effects and what the viewer thinks they know of the plot begins to unravel.\u00a0 Dr. Banks begins to consult Emily\u2019s previous psychiatrist (Catherine Zeta-Jones) on Emily\u2019s case. The plot spirals from there and keeps the audience on their toes, trying to guess the ending before it happens.<\/p>\n

Rooney Mara (“The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo”)<\/i> shines in her roll of a ghostlike character suffering from depression.\u00a0 She does a beautiful job of portraying this broken character with hollow eyes yet a quiet intensity that was also shown by Mara in “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo.” Mara is quietly stunning and handles the roll with grace.<\/p>\n

Jude Law plays a British psychiatrist who came to America to practice because people in America view people seeing psychiatrists as getting better, rather than being mentally ill.\u00a0 The doctor eventually becomes so engrossed in Emily\u2019s case that he loses his practice and almost loses his family too. \u00a0Jude Law was perfectly cast and did an excellent job with the roll.<\/p>\n

Channing Tatum (“Magic Mike”) <\/i>plays a character that is subdued and forgettable. He gave a lackluster performance in what was a boring roll to begin with.\u00a0 This character was the only part of the movie lacking development and depth.<\/p>\n

“Side Effects” will be the final Soderbergh motion picture to go to theaters before he semi retires at age 50.\u00a0 Soderbergh\u2019s previous directing credits include “Magic Mike,” “<\/i>Contagion,” “<\/i>Erin Brockovich,” <\/i>and the “Ocean\u2019s” <\/i>trilogy.\u00a0 He has left his retirement plans open-ended, not ruling out a return to directing and producing in a few years after pursuing other projects.<\/p>\n

“Side Effects” is thrilling and exciting. \u00a0The film channels everyone\u2019s fear of people not believing their sanity while warning about the dangerous possibilities of side effects.\u00a0 Anyone who enjoys a movie that is psychologically stimulating and keeps their mind racing will love this classic Soderbergh movie.<\/p>\n