ReelBob: ‘You Were Never Really Here’ ★★

By Bob Bloom

Joaquin Phoenix is never afraid of an acting challenge, claiming territory other performers are too timid to tread.

Phoenix commits himself to his portrayal of Joe, a traumatized veteran who tracks down missing girls for a living, and who does not mind getting blood on his hands.

In “You Were Never Really Here,” Phoenix loses himself too much into his character; he is nearly inarticulate, mumbling most of his dialogue, making many sequences of writer-director Lynne Ramsay’s movie incomprehensible.

The basic story revolves around Joe trying to find the young daughter of a gubernatorial candidate and finding himself over his head in a political conspiracy.

The plot involves kidnapping and murder, which Phoenix’s Joe seems to stumble through. You get some sense that he knows what he is doing, but you are not entirely certain.

Joe seems obsessed with suicide, ostensibly based on past experiences in the military in Afghanistan as well as previous cases.

He is haunted by shadows and flashbacks of the life he has led and what he has seen.

Yet Ramsay’s idea of simply giving us glimpses of these mental temblors is unsatisfying, and often causes some confusion about who Joe really is and what he has done.

It almost feels as if Ramsay is baiting us to look one way while she takes the movie in an entirely other direction.

It doesn’t help that Phoenix is so doggedly committed to giving such an interior, closed-off performance that you are unable to get inside his shoes — or his head.

At times, “You Were Never Really Here” feels incoherent and muddled.

Outside of Joe, you have no idea what motivates any of the other characters.

Ramsay seems to be daring you to dislike the movie — and at various junctures, you do.

One of the problems is the tone Ramsay is trying to set. Is “You Were Never Really Here” an artistic action movie? Or is it a character study of a damaged individual?

The movie emits an unpleasant aroma and a semi-nightmarish aura that makes you feel uncomfortable.

Perhaps that is what Ramsay intended. If so, she succeeded beyond her wildest dreams.

The movie has a vibe similar to Ramsay’s “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” her 2012 feature about a mother dealing with her son, whose dark behavior continues to grow until he acts on his deadly impulses.

While Joe in “You Were Never Really Here” lacks the malevolent tendencies of Kevin, he radiates the same dangerous and unpredictable sense, making you squirm as you wait to see where Joe’s demons drive him.

The rest of the cast are simply ciphers and props for Joe’s behaviors.

Ekaterina Samsonov as Nina, the child Joe is hired to find, seems nearly as damaged as her savoir.

The rest of the cast make no impression whatsoever.

You cannot enjoy “You Were Never Really Here.” It’s not that kind of movie. You simply experience it and walk away shaking off despair as if it were grime.

I am a member of the Indiana Film Journalists Association. My reviews appear at ReelBob (reelbob.com) and Rottentomatoes (www.rottentomatoes.com). I also review Blu-rays and DVDs. I can be reached by email at bobbloomjc@gmail.com or on Twitter @ReelBobBloom. Links to my reviews can be found on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn.

YOU WERE NEVER REALLY HERE
2 stars out of 4
(R), graphic violence, disturbing and grisly images, language, brief nudity