The Side Effects of Having a Dragon Tattoo While Married to a Stripper

Side Effects:

Story:

Emily Taylor, a clinically depressed 20 something year old, goes through an extreme stage of depression when her husband, Martin, is released from prison. Her psychiatrist prescribes her pills which have a very disturbing effect on her and affects the lives of everyone around her.

Review:

Side Effects was for the most part, a very dark and dramatic psychological thriller with almost no happy moments. If you were to observe carefully, you would be able to count the amount of happy scenes on one hand. For those about to cry "spoiler!" watch the trailer and tell me what I spoiled. With that said, I think this is one of Steven Soderbergh's more noticeable works and actually provides the message that sometimes (prescribed) drugs don't help people get better.

What I liked the most:

1. It's an actual psychological thriller.

Most people never try to make their films very psychological, even if they're making movies which delve into that; all you see in The Shining is Jack Nicholson with an axe yelling, "here's Johnny!"; and in Fight Club Tyler Durden doesn't even realize he was the soap maker until the very end.

What I like about Side Effects is that everything about it is psychological. Everything that happens has to do with the side effects of certain medications, as well as how drugs can break someone down. The entire movie gives you the feeling of being almost physically thrown from your seat. In a good way.

2. Rooney Mara and Jude Law's performances.

Very rarely do you actually feel like actors in movies aren't the actors, but are actually people who have a camera aimed at them. In Side Effects, Rooney Mara and Jude Law both give what I think are their best performances yet. They're genuine and authentic, making one feel like the movie is more documentary than scripted.

3. The music.

The best way to describe the soundtrack is that it's purposely disorganized. Each song makes each scene feel more chaotic than it would have if no soundtrack was in Side Effects, and while watching the movie, I felt that the soundtrack added the necessary chaos to a story that was already very well written.

What I liked the least:

1. Everyone else's subpar performances.

Channing Tatum and Steven Soderbergh have collaborated on Magic Mike, so I assumed that Tatum would give Side Effects his all and do an amazing job. Unfortunately I was thoroughly disappointed with not only Tatum but Catherine Zeta-Jones as well. They have a few moments where they shine, but the rest of the film they seem to lazily act their parts out. Very disappointing.

Who I recommend Side Effects to:

EVERYONE! If you have a brain and you like movies that tease your brain then watch Side Effects. It's worth the $12.50 at Cineplex. Landmark sells tickets for $8 to $10, depending on what time you watch a movie. Half price on Tuesday for both theaters.