The Nest

Name: The Nest
Genre: Drama, Romance
Released: September 18, 2020
Duration: 107 min
Rating: 80
Cast: Abby Stretch, Adeel Akhtar, Annabel Leventon, Anne Reid, Bernardo Santos

2020

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 37 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 41 Ratings

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6.6

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6.6	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 41 Ratings

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The Nest

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Movie Details & Credits

IFC Films | Release Date: September 18, 2020 | R

Starring: Abby Stretch, Adeel Akhtar, Annabel Leventon, Anne Reid, Bernardo Santos, Carrie Coon, Charlie Shotwell, James Nelson-Joyce, Jude Law, Julian Ferro, Kaisa Hammarlund, Marcus Cornwall, Michael Culkin, Michel Alexandre Gonzalez, Oona Roche, Polly Allen, Tanya Allen, Tattiawna Jones, Tommy Gene Surridge, Wendy Crewson

Summary: Rory (Jude Law), an ambitious entrepreneur and former commodities broker, persuades his American wife, Allison (Carrie Coon), and their children to leave the comforts of suburban America and return to his native England during the 1980s. Sensing opportunity, Rory rejoins his former firm and leases a centuries-old country manor, with groundsRory (Jude Law), an ambitious entrepreneur and former commodities broker, persuades his American wife, Allison (Carrie Coon), and their children to leave the comforts of suburban America and return to his native England during the 1980s. Sensing opportunity, Rory rejoins his former firm and leases a centuries-old country manor, with grounds for Allison’s horses and plans to build a stable. Soon the promise of a lucrative new beginning starts to unravel, the couple have to face the unwelcome truths lying beneath the surface of their marriage.… Expand

Director: T. Sean Durkin

Genre(s): Drama, Romance

Rating: R

Runtime: 107 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Tara Brady

Aug 26, 2021

Jude Law channels swaggering disquiet, resembling both the tormentor and tormented of a Harold Pinter play. Read full review

David Sims

Dec 23, 2020

The Nest is one of the best films of the year: Though it’s set in the past, it’s about the feeling of one’s own home turning against you when the world outside feels all the more hostile—a theme that resonates far beyond its time period. Read full review

Richard Lawson

Sep 17, 2020

The Nest is a complex movie, despite its economical size. Read full review

The Guardian Benjamin Lee

Jan 28, 2020

It’s elegantly constructed and precisely composed, with Durkin painstakingly recreating an era without falling into nostalgic overload. But it’s also a drama about a family that keeps us at a distance for the most part. Read full review

James Berardinelli

Nov 18, 2020

The Nest is an autopsy of the disintegration of the middle-class dream and its impact on those for whom it becomes a nightmare. It’s a rumination about the fragility of happiness. It’s a modern-day horror film with a spooky mansion, a body that refuses to stay buried, and demons that haunt not the benighted halls of the house but the unsettled corridors of the psyche. Read full review

Michael Phillips

Sep 17, 2020

All four key actors are lovely, none of them playing to the camera — Durkin likes nice, long, slow-zoom set-ups, roomy and generous — and all of them affecting. Coon has the built-in advantage of playing the character undergoing the most evident and playable changes. But she’s extraordinary in her contained emotion. Read full review

Carson Lund

Sep 15, 2020

Sean Durkin’s sweated-over filmmaking tediously lifts a familiar tale of domestic dysfunction to the level of myth. Read full review

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User Reviews

shekt

Jan 17, 2022

I really enjoyed the acting performances, and the cinematography -- beautiful. The story was a bit slow, but that's ok, sometimes it's what you want

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Igor_1311

Sep 26, 2020

I loved how the story starts to give you subtle, little hints that there is a big problem lurking within this family that seems picture-perfect on the outside. The movie feels a bit like a slow build which culminates in a fairly intense final act leaving you wondering if this mans marriageI loved how the story starts to give you subtle, little hints that there is a big problem lurking within this family that seems picture-perfect on the outside. The movie feels a bit like a slow build which culminates in a fairly intense final act leaving you wondering if this mans marriage and family can survive this. Overall I did not go into it expecting much but was pleasantly surprised, especially with the limited options available right now during the pandemic.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

JLuis_001

Sep 27, 2020

Marriage is not a dream story. At least not always and cinema has known how to exploit that in many ways, but not always in the best way.
Yet sometimes comes along the way a story that it may not convince you that marriage is something to aspire to, but I guarantee that it will be a goodMarriage is not a dream story. At least not always and cinema has known how to exploit that in many ways, but not always in the best way.
Yet sometimes comes along the way a story that it may not convince you that marriage is something to aspire to, but I guarantee that it will be a good experience to watch it.

The Nest comes to touch that theme in the story of Rory and Allison (Jude Law & Carrie Coon) who apparently already had a worn relationship, but the routine of the family life masked the signs.

Something very interesting about this film is that for the most part it looks like a horror film, but it just isn't.
There's nothing supernatural stalking this family, what's hunting them, is their inevitable breakdown.

Director Sean Durkin delivers his second film after the notorious Martha Marcy May Marlene nine years later, and this one is unequivocally more challenging and far more accomplished.

But I must warn you, if you watch the trailers before you decide to see the it, and get expectations of a sort of suspense thriller, you will be quite disappointed.

The approach of The Nest is elegant, intricate and thorough.
It doesn't reward the casual viewer, it rewards the one who pays attention and is willing to dive into a story that isn't looking to satisfy you with a happy ending.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

TVJerry

Sep 24, 2020

Jude Law plays a stock broker who moves his American family back to his English homeland. He rents an old mansion, builds stables for his wife’s horse hobby and sends the kids to new schools. All of this disruption, plus his faltering career cause challenges to the family’s relationships.Jude Law plays a stock broker who moves his American family back to his English homeland. He rents an old mansion, builds stables for his wife’s horse hobby and sends the kids to new schools. All of this disruption, plus his faltering career cause challenges to the family’s relationships. The spouse and both kids get moments that examine the evolution of their new situation and how it affects their connections with each other. Even so, it’s Law’s complex character that drives the drama and his creation of the man’s flaws and charms that makes for an absorbing character study. Interestingly, other than the teen’s music and the fact that the wife smokes in restaurants, there’s almost no evidence that this takes place in the 80s.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

kevingarywilkes

Jul 25, 2021

This film has fantastic cinematography, pitch-perfect acting, a perfect score, and a wonderful mood. It seemed to be inspired by Hitchcock, from the patient unraveling to the font choices. I also enjoyed the cultural commentary on British manners and American gruffness that was perfectlyThis film has fantastic cinematography, pitch-perfect acting, a perfect score, and a wonderful mood. It seemed to be inspired by Hitchcock, from the patient unraveling to the font choices. I also enjoyed the cultural commentary on British manners and American gruffness that was perfectly portrayed in the marriage dynamics. That being said, that plot of this film never fully develops. After the O'Hara family moves to husband Rory's native UK and rents out a dismal mansion — the plot sputters to a question mark. The film is marketed as a "thriller," but these plot devices are never fully explored (suspicious deaths; intimations of the supernatural) — and ultimately, it leaves little as fodder for analysis. As a character study, it's interesting and nuanced, but it never hits the mark it could. Jude Law's character never faces his denouement, and thus a catharsis is lacking. I was very disappointed by this film, mostly because it had so much potential.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

KenR

Dec 21, 2021

There are moments of dramatic human insights within this labored work, otherwise, it comes across as overstretched pretensions of a failed family unit - falling apart from greed and superficial delusions. It’s somewhat reminiscent of Ingmar Bergman or Eugene O’Neil but without the solidThere are moments of dramatic human insights within this labored work, otherwise, it comes across as overstretched pretensions of a failed family unit - falling apart from greed and superficial delusions. It’s somewhat reminiscent of Ingmar Bergman or Eugene O’Neil but without the solid literary groundings of the latter. Direction is too often heavy handed and the trendy foul-mouthed dialog, along with a needlessly voyeuristic sex scene, limits its suitability to a wider audience. It also dangerously flirts with other genres, at times suggesting it's heading towards a Horror theme; this will also put some audiences off. Performances from Jude Law, Carrie Coon as the parents, with Oona Roche and Charlie Shotwell as their children, are delivered in hard-working and convincing form but mostly the characters are unlikable. Cinematography is pleasing in its own drab way and it has a pensive music score that props up its drama quite well. Perhaps if given a more even-handed approach, this might have had broader appeal. As is, can’t see too many ‘enjoying’ this one.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

markscarls

May 5, 2021

The critics love this movie because of the good acting. However, the plot is merely a big tease. Story lines go nowhere. If you like to watch a family bicker and lie to each other, this will be your cup of tea. I thought the tea got cold.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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