Are the kids asleep? Good, let’s talk.
“The Loft” is a decidedly depraved movie about five exceptionally rich men who agree that they need somewhere to go to do whatever they want with no questions asked. They purchase (surprise, surprise) a loft to which each man will have his own key and private (read: sexual) reasons for using it. Things take a turn for the worse when they find a body in the loft, and now we have our classic “whodunit” set up. As you can probably imagine, the results are incredibly twisted.
These men are pigs. They are horrible people, and even the one that the movie tries to make the token “good guy” would still be considered despicable by the standards of anyone with a remotely sound moral compass.
One major thing this movie lacks is someone to root for. As it stands, you have a solid story that is hard to get personally invested in, because you can’t really side with any one character and keep an upright conscience. I can’t help but think of all the creative directions they could have taken with a private loft that only they know about, but unfortunately, this movie only uses the loft as a place for adulterous sexual escapades and never explores any other possibilities.
Technically speaking, there is nothing truly impressive here. Karl Urban and James Marsden are suitable actors, but if “The Loft” were your only piece of evidence, you wouldn’t know. The main actors and supporting cast are all suspicious enough to add mystery to the situation, but the soundtrack is terribly generic, the camerawork never impressed me, and the only environments to speak of are the loft itself, parties in casinos and bars, and mansions with no style of which to speak. One fascinating decision they made was to conveniently make their wives brunette, while all of the mistresses, save for one, were blonde. I guess it helps you keep characters straight in this deeply complicated, cerebral film.
Despite the mediocrity of pretty much all aspects of this movie, I can’t say that I was ever bored. This elaborate and complicated story makes for an incredibly fast-paced, unpredictable ride. The way the story jumps between events before the murder to inside the loft with all five men trying to piece together the puzzle gets a little confusing at times, and the transitions can be harsh, but it stays interesting all the same. The only downside here is that the movie feels too long and could have benefitted from cutting out one of the numerous plot twists, which would have shortened the movie by about 10 minutes and resulted in a more satisfactory conclusion to the events. While the situation does get resolved, you can’t help but feel like some of the characters got off reasonably scot-free, in spite of their dastardly behavior.
The more time I spent mulling over “The Loft,” the less I liked it. While it is true that it remained entertaining and gripping throughout, the movie ultimately felt hollow. Sure, this movie has a great puzzle that is a blast to figure out, but in the end, it completely failed to make any sort of significant point about the behavior depicted. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think every movie should be preachy. But if I leave the theater having to wonder whether or not there was a point to what I just watched, I believe that movie has failed. It becomes too dark for its own good and is unable to handle that dementedness in an intelligent way. So in the end, what started out as an interesting premise with the potential to be mind-blowing eventually degrades into pointless licentiousness and betrayal, leading to an unimportant and ultimately unpleasant movie that leaves a bad taste in your mouth.
_*Pass the Popcorn if:*_ You thoroughly enjoy a tight, if a little silly, plot. You want to see Eric Stonestreet compensate for his role in “Modern Family.” You’re thinking about doing something like this and need to be convinced otherwise.
_*Pass it Up if:*_ You like movies to have a discernable point. Adultery makes you angry. It is even remotely inconvenient for you to go. You can still get a ticket to “Paddington.”
