Product Details

• Actors: Christian Bale, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Aitana Sánchez-Gijón, John Sharian, Michael Ironside
• Directors: Brad Anderson
• Writers: Scott Kosar
• Producers: Antonia Nava, Carlos Fernández, Javier Arsuaga, Julio Fernández, Teresa Gefaell
• Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, Widescreen, NTSC
• Language: English (Dolby Digital 5.1)
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: R (Restricted)
• Studio: Paramount
• DVD Release Date: June 7, 2005
• Run Time: 101 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (223 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B0007Y08QA
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #9,829 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

  Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

  #26 in	Movies & TV > Art House & International > European Cinema > Spain
  #28 in	Movies & TV > Art House & International > By Genre > Mystery & Suspense

• For more information about "The Machinist" visit the Internet Movie Database (IMDb)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

As a bleak and chilling mood piece, The Machinist gets under your skin and stays there. Christian Bale threw himself into the title role with such devotion that he shed an alarming 63 pounds to play Trevor Reznik (talk about "starving artist"!), a factory worker who hasn't slept in a year. He's haunted by some mysterious occurrence that turned him into a paranoid husk, sleepwalking a fine line between harsh reality and nightmare fantasy--a state of mind that leaves him looking disturbingly gaunt and skeletal in appearance. (It's no exaggeration to say that Bale resembles a Holocaust survivor from vintage Nazi-camp liberation newsreels.) In a cinematic territory far removed from his 1998 romantic comedy Next Stop Wonderland, director Brad Anderson orchestrates a grimy, nocturnal world of washed-out blues and grays, as Trevor struggles to assemble the clues of his psychological conundrum. With a friendly hooker (Jennifer Jason Leigh) and airport waitress (Aitana Sánchez-Gijón) as his only stable links to sanity, Trevor reaches critical mass and seems ready to implode just as The Machinist reveals its secrets. For those who don't mind a trip to hell with a theremin-laced soundtrack, The Machinist seems primed for long-term status as a cult thriller on the edge. --Jeff Shannon

Product Description

THE MACHINIST is the story of Trevor Reznik, a machinist who hasn’t slept in over a year. Working in a machine shop, Trevor faces the usual occupational hazards, yet his extreme fatigue only makes them worse, causing him to accidentally cut off a co-worker’s hand. What Trevor suffers from clearly isn’t a typical case of insomnia…

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

169 of 179 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "If you were any thinner, you wouldn't exist", October 23, 2004

By	M. J Leonard "MikeonAlpha" (Silver Lake, Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The Machinist would probably have to be one of the creepiest and psychologically complex movies of the year. The film is also a standout because of Christian Bale's withering, and soul-destroying performance as a man wracked by insomnia, and tortured by guilt. Much has been made of Bale's dramatic weight loss and his astonishing transformation into the main character - he purportedly wanted to undergo a complete physical and mental metamorphosis - but nothing will prepare the viewer for the reality of Christian's starving, skeletal-like body. Bale is nothing short of amazing in this movie - he's an actor of astounding capacities; and it's not just the feat of his physical transformation, but the fact that he totally inhabits and becomes so totally immersed in his character.

With a beautifully moody musical score and a dark, somber, yet visually stunning look, The Machinist is riveting jigsaw puzzle, an astute intellectual exercise where the viewer is left to put the pieces together, and decide which world is actually fantasy or reality. Trevor Reznick (Bale) has terrible insomnia and hasn't slept in a year. He's decimated physically and mentally and has become irrevocably trapped in a prison that is his own guilt-ridden, paranoid, and disillusioned mind - every time he tries to close his eyes something interrupts him. As the story opens, Trevor is busy trying to dispose of a dead body; the story then jumps to the events leading up to this incident.

By day Trevor works in a factory as a machinist, and at night he zealously writes messages on post-it notes, and fanatically washes his hands with bleach. He seeks solace in his favorite hooker (played with tender resolve by Jennifer Jason Leigh), and also the company of Marie (Aitana Sanchez-Gijon), a waitress at an airport coffee shop. He enjoys her company and likes to leave her extra large tips. One afternoon while at work, Reznick - distracted for a moment - contributes to a terrible accident involving a colleague. At the same time, Ivan (John Sharian), a bald-headed figure with a horribly malformed thumb and two fingers missing and whom no one else can see, constantly follows Trevor. Increasingly paranoid, Trevor becomes convinced that Ivan and Miller, his co-worker, (Michael Ironside) have trumped up some kind of conspiracy against him and are trying to drive him mad.

The Machinist is weird and difficult. As Trevor embarks on a journey of self-awareness, the viewer is left wondering whether fatigue has robbed him of reason, or whether there is some grand scheme to drive him nutty. Brave and visually sumptuous, one of the movie's many memorable visuals occurs when Trevor takes Marie's son on a horror ride called Route 666, with terrible results for both Trevor and for the boy. Guilt, loss of self, repression and odd mother fixations are all themes that are astutely and cleverly woven into the fabric of the story. For most of the film, Reznik is just a literal bag of bones, desperately floating through empty, dark apartments, and grey, storm-ridden industrial landscapes -a kind of postmodern anti-hero, a ghost who is desperately looking to make his peace. Mike Leonard October 04.

66 of 70 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "I just want to sleep...", June 10, 2005

By	Michael Crane (Orland Park, IL USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

I have to say that "The Machinist" is easily the most unsettling, disturbing and bizarre film I have seen so far this year. I mean, you can tell from reading the back of the DVD cover and seeing how disturbingly thin Christian Bale in pictures from the movie that this is not going to be a very happy time. Yet, last night I was in the mood for something dark and uncompromising. I got it and then some with this cleverly haunting film that is unforgettable.

Bale plays "Trevor Reznik," a troubled and fatigued machinist who hasn't slept for a year. He lives his life in isolation, with the few minor exceptions such as a friendly prostitute who takes a liking to him and an airport coffee shop waitress he visits every night. Things take a turn for the worst when he meets a fellow machinist for the first time... but nobody knows who this guy is. They tell Trevor that he doesn't exist. The paranoia and confusion leads to a horrific accident on the job that involves his co-worker. And that's when he gets the strange notes in his apartment. Either Trevor is completely delusional and has lost his mind... or somebody really is out to get him.

What's really intriguing about the movie is that just like Trevor, we do not know exactly what is real or what is made up. There are times when we're doubtful of what we're seeing, and then we get roped in and second-guess ourselves. The movie is a non-stop dread fest that just speaks of loneliness and paranoia, and that's why it works. It looks and feels exactly like it should. From the very first few minutes, it's easy to realize that this is going to be one unsettling and dark experience. It is one that you may want to re-watch after you see it all. You'll definitely think about it for a while after it's all said and done, but personally I didn't think it was that hard to piece together after it was over. It made sense, and it made even more sense on the second viewing. Christian Bale is fantastic in this. I can't believe he dropped down to around 100 pounds for the role. Yes, you should be warned that Bale looks EXTREMELY skinny in this... almost like a walking skeleton, as was intended in the script. I think the movie was very well written and directed.

This isn't a movie for those who get easily disturbed or freaked out. It's a pretty uneasy movie to watch. Let's just say you won't feel extremely cheerful after you get done watching this. You may want to put on something funny after you're done, otherwise you're going to have this movie stuck in your head while you try to sleep. The DVD has a little to offer in the extra features department, such as commentary from the director, a making of feature, 8 deleted scenes and the theatrical trailer.

I really enjoyed "The Machinist." It surprised me and kept me hooked from beginning to end. I have to say that I kind of missed watching dark movies like this. Seems like there's too many "cutesy-wutesy" movies for the family, so it's good to see something so brutal, so raw and so in your face like this. If you want to be disturbed and see something that isn't your typical thriller, "The Machinist" is something to put down on your list of movies to see. As depressing and dreadful as this movie can get... I'm ready to see it again. -Michael Crane

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Guilty Conscience, January 9, 2006

By	Matt (NJ) - See all my reviews

I see a number of essay-length reviews of this movie, which makes sense, as the movie is indeed deep and complex - yet for the sake of those simply seeking a concise review, I will keep it brief.

The movie has a dark and uncollected tone. Christian Bale plays Trevor Reznick, a man who is unable to sleep and who has become malnourished and emaciated. His inability to sleep causes him great trouble and leads him in and out of reality until he is brought back to the source - that which has caused his troubles and his insomnia: his guilt.

Bale gives an unbelievable performance in this film. I can't imagine it ever being worth what he did to himself physically, though. He simply starved himself for the role. You would think this would have horrible repercussions (and I'm sure it did), yet he seemed to have made a full recovery by the time he played Bruce Wayne in Batman.