Under the Silver Lake: writer-director David Robert Mitchell must be commended for fully embracing the weirdness of this mystery, and without playing it for humour. The story, of an obsessive search for a beautiful girl, starts innocent enough, but as the protagonist goes deeper in his quest, everything (characters, locations, situations, coincidences) starts to get odder and odder. It can be frustrating if, like the main character, one expects to know at all times “the meaning of message”. The main character, a stoner who loves his codes, connections, and conspiracy theories, is the perfect choice to be at the center of this labyrinth, and he is played to perfection by Andrew Garfield. It’s easy to believe that he would fall in love and become obsessed with the whereabouts of Riley Keough’s character, sweet and angelic. The film has an elegant look to it, from the meticulously crafted Los Angeles apartments (by production designer Michael Perry) to the classically-inspired camerawork (by cinematographer Mike Gioulakis); the musical score, composed by Disasterpeace, is heavily influenced by old Hollywood melodramas and films noir. The film, however, feels a bit overlong.
