Foxcatcher

Steve Carell disappears into the role of John du Pont, the crazy rich guy who took it upon himself to shoot and kill one of the wrestlers on a team he created. Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo are heartbreakingly good as Mark and David Schultz, two Olympic gold medal-winning siblings who, unfortunately, worked for du Pont when he had his breakdown. Down on his luck and living on ramen noodles, Mark gets a call from du Pont inviting him out to his Foxcatcher farm. Mark finds a sense of purpose working with du Pont, and eventually summons his brother and his family to Foxcatcher. What follows is a descent into insanity for the attention-starved du Pont, who lives under the chastising eye of his mother (Vanessa Redgrave) and is obsessed with controlling others. The madness eventually ended with the death of one of the brothers, and du Pont living his final years in prison. Carell is amazingly good here; one only need watch a few minutes of the real du Pont on YouTube to know that he has nailed the characterization. Tatum and Ruffalo are equally good as the confused brothers. Mark Schultz is currently protesting director Bennett Miller's portrayal of him in the film, and he might be in the right on a few aspects of that portrayal. Still, it's a great film that leaves an appropriately sick feeling in the stomach.