Direction: Charlie McDowell
Country: USA
An unremitting establishing shot remains stationary during the opening credits of Windfall, a meager thriller directed by Charlie McDowell (The One I Love, 2014; The Discovery, 2017) and starring Jesse Plemons, Lily Collins, and Jason Segel. The beautiful vacation house we see in that shot, and its surroundings, become the setting of a conflict between the selfish tech billionaire (Plemons) who owns it, his unhappy wife (Collins), and the inexperienced burglar (Segel) who attempts to steal from them.
The characters feel so at ease in the face of this situation that the film becomes instantly discredited. Moreover, the dialogues are pretty insipid and nearly every single scene feels tediously long and counterfeit, all good reasons to make us indifferent about the characters.
About halfway, an unexpected occurrence creates the erroneous sensation that the film would turn for the better. The proceedings remained dull just the same, whereas the final twist, more than predictable, is dispassionate. Windfall is a huge misfire. It’s that kind of desensitized picture that proves unworthy of a big screen experience.
