Gary Dretzka
Leonard Klady
David Poland
Ray Pride

The Machinist

Back at Sundance, I wrote, "The Machinist is a must-buy for someone who wants a sure fire winner for the fall of 2005." Why? Because Christian Bale is so physically transformed that next summer's Batman Begins audience will line up to be shocked. But the filmmakers didn't want to ride that horse, so The Machinist is coming this fall.

That said, The Machinist is a pretty damned good little movie. Director Brad Anderson has been up and down, but here he delivers with assurance. There was practically a sidebar at Sundance this year of movies about people who were or were not living in a dream and reality or both or neither. And The Machinist was the best of the lot. It's dark and creepy and a headache is a real possibility. But this should be, with Ghost in The Shell 2, the class of Midnight Madness this year.

- by David Poland