A couple of days after seeing Midnight Special, I’m still undecided on my final opinion of it. Jeff Nichols’ latest film has many admirable qualities, but also some glaring plot holes and annoying non-conclusions to some of the story threads.
Jaeden Lieberher plays Alton, a young boy with some mysterious special powers who has been raised by a religious cult headed by Calvin Meyer (Sam Shepard). He is taken from them by his father, Roy (Michael Shannon) and his friend Lucas (Joel Edgerton) and they race across the country heading for a specific place that must arrive at on a specific date. The early scenes are my favourites in the film. Driving through the night, the exact nature of Alton’s powers and Roy’s intentions unclear, they have a mysterious ethereal quality. That effect is aided by Adam Stone’s cinematography and David Wingo’s score. The performances are universally good with Edgerton and Kirsten Dunst, as Alton’s mother, standing out.
As the film reaches its climax, there are some very gripping moments, but the movie doesn’t feel totally like a coherent whole. Massed ranks of law enforcement officers are looking for Alton but not one of them thinks to check his mother’s house where he spends at least a day. The cult have access to the most top-secret government material, but its members are released without the reason for that being explained, and without being put under surveillance. That is convenient for the plot as it allows two of them to go after Alton, but it makes little sense. Why Alton is with the cult is not explained, and once his secret is, it doesn’t really stand up.
Despite all those short comings, this is still an enjoyable movie, even if it at times infuriating.
Rating: 6.5 out of 10