This was one of those films that spent so much time on the back burner with me barely considering seeing it while I had the chance, much like "The Ides of March". From the very first moment, this didn't seem like the heavy-hitter that many were pushing it to be. I've seen many a film take on the psychological thriller plot that this one takes on, and it has gotten to the point of becoming a depressing cliche. Too many films have used it as a gimmick with no idea exactly what purpose it serves, if any at all. Their intent behind it is to attain that sought-after title of "mind-fuck" that has been twisted out of any strong meaning it had. It's a term that loud college kids use to explain films that are too smart for them.
And there is a problem to be found in "Take Shelter" in that for the first solid hour, it unfolds in a manner that's so utterly predictable that it nearly turns you off from it. I was writing out the tweet review in my head well before the film was over, somewhere along the lines of "typical rundown of requisite psychological thriller scenes". What held me back from it then was the skill being put on screen. Yes, the cinematography was rather simply, and music merely eerie. All the same, director Jeff Nichols keeps things earth-bound in its depiction of a family teetering not just on, but towards the edge of economic collapse.
