Green Room

Every so often, a film comes along that knocks your socks off. It is usually a fresh film maker, a debut creation, and something that blends the suspenseful simplicity of steady-cam pans, bare strains of music just inching the viewer toward a reaction, and raw, understated acting. It is a piece of art. Well, Jeremy Saulnier’s 2013 gem “Blue Ruin” fits that description. His sophomore effort, “Green Room” not so much.

It’s not that it was poorly done or even a bad movie, it just lacks the magic that an unexpected critically acclaimed piece of work has. There is too much pressure to perform on a follow-up with a larger budget, bigger named actors, and a compelling story. Just ask Neil Blomkamp or Duncan Jones.

“Green Room” follows an amateur punk rock quartet on their final dimes. They reluctantly accept a shady gig in the back woods of Oregon, only to find out it is a Nazi skinhead bar led by the adorable Patrick Stewart. There has been much praise for his performance out of type, but I’m here to tell you that he lacks the screen time, dialogue, or action to warrant that praise. He does a fine job, but I would call it just average, and moreover, a wasted opportunity to play a memorably despicable villain.

Anyhow, the quartet stumble into a series of unfortunate situations, and they must fight their way back to civilization. The film preys on the ordinary fears much in the way that Eli Roth has done with his gore porn variety (“Hostel”, “Green Inferno”). It is a voyeuristic glimpse of torture and violence which compounds the tension and fear, and that is where the film goes a bit off the rails.

The suspense, music, direction, acting, and even dialogue are fantastic up until the blood begins to flow. It gets really dark, really quickly and the violence tends to dilute the artistic integrity of the film. Anton Yelchin plays Pat, the bass guitarist and moral compass of the group, but as the situation becomes direr, he devolves into a primal beast himself, which is fascinating, but doesn’t entirely fit the tone of the first half hour of the film.

Macon Blair (“Blue Ruin”) is tremendous as Gabe, the manager of the Nazi bar. He effortlessly conveys his discomfort, his doubt, his fear, and his own conflicted morality as he finds himself embroiled in a situation beyond his control.

What made the film difficult to admire was how although the methods of the skinheads’ angry violence make sense when the conclusion finally comes, it is nonetheless disturbing and unnecessary. Dogs, box cutters, shotguns, and machetes. Jeremy Saulnier clearly wanted to shock audiences with this effort, and he definitely accomplished that. It is visceral, gritty, and most importantly, creepy. Very creepy.

I’m not much of a punk rock fan, but I can appreciate this story. I can appreciate just about any original story for its effort. What disappointed me most was how much buzz has been surrounding Patrick Stewart’s character. It simply wasn’t anything close to what I was hoping to experience.

This experience definitely delivers a jolt of panic and claustrophobia. If you choose to see what the buzz is about, maybe skip the popcorn; the violence will wrench your gut and make you nauseated. It will definitely satisfy the gore junkies out there though, and might even impress them with the creative use of makeup and prosthetics, but to say it is gratuitous would be an understatement. Come for the buzz, enjoy the story, and leave feeling a little bit ickier on the inside. 6/10.