Take Shelter

R

Released Sep 30, 2011

2 hr. 4 min.

Drama

Mystery & Thriller

List

92%

170 Reviews

Tomatometer

81%

25,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

Curtis LaForche (Michael Shannon) lives in a small Ohio town with his loving wife (Jessica Chastain) and hearing-impaired daughter (Tova Stewart). Though money is tight, he and his family are very happy. But then, Curtis begins having terrifying dreams about an apocalypse that threatens them all. Rather than confiding in Samantha, he begins building a storm shelter in the backyard, and his strange behavior causes tension in their marriage and the surrounding community.

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Critics Consensus

Michael Shannon gives a powerhouse performance and the purposefully subtle filmmaking creates a perfect blend of drama, terror, and dread.

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Bob L

This is usually the type of movie we see used as a character study for a very specific location, person, or condition--often dropping pearls along the way which help us fill in the blanks as to why it should deserve special consideration or to educate us about a central character's extenuating circumstances. Take Shelter makes use of this style without honoring its contract, moving at a glacial pace without reward of the details that make this a useful technique for building suspense. Instead, suspense is built through Curtis's growing paranoia that he's inherited his mother's schizophrenia as it begins to blur the lines of reality beyond his tolerance. Wife Samantha's character makes the decision to stick with him, but the movie takes too long to get to her transformation from milquetoast to matriarch. Squandered, too, is the deaf daughter plot contrivance (imagine the deaf daughter having hallucinations she does not yet have the capacity to communicate). It just seems like this movie has so much more it could be saying, but either doesn't realize it or just patently refuses to.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

04/14/24

Full Review

Kyle W

This is one of the best films I have seen in DECADES! The acting of Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain took my breath away many times during this film. This movie was horrifying and beautiful. Those words don't seem compatible, I know, but once you see this movie you will know what I mean. I will never view another storm in my life the same way after seeing this magnificent movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/09/24

Full Review

Valerie H

Michael Shannon's acting is brilliant in this and Jessica Chastain also gives an admirable performance. Don't watch this one before bedtime; sleep will be a long time coming. A bit long perhaps, but I was never bored watching it, as Shannon's acting was so impressive. I did not anticipate that ending whatsoever. A must watch for anyone who is a fan of good acting.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

04/07/24

Full Review

Max C

DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME. All the good reviews gotta be bots. LEBRON JAMES

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

04/07/24

Full Review

Alec C

How can we deduce what is foretold or fictitious? A small-time family man is experiencing vivid dreams of an oncoming catastrophe, and attempts to build a storm shelter in order to protect his family from the storm, much to the concern to his wife and his neighbors. Incredibly deep and psychological, the fear of the unexplained is felt within the narrative of a man trying to understand what he's seeing!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/15/24

Full Review

Patrick T

This movie is a very powerful film about mental illness. I would not categorize it as apocalyptic as some web sites have it.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/21/24

Full Review

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Jeff Nichols

Director

Michael Shannon

Curtis LaForche

Jessica Chastain

Samantha LaForche

Shea Whigham

Dewart

Katy Mixon

Nat

Ray McKinnon

Kyle

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Critics Consensus: 50/50 is Certified Fresh

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Geoff Andrew

Sight & Sound

What makes Nichols' film so satisfying, at least until the melodrama of the final act, is the deftness of the characterisations and the constant sense that things are probably considerably more complex than they're perceived.

Aug 29, 2017

Full Review

David Thomson

The New Republic

In my estimate, this unique and frequently arresting film suffers from the monotony of the lead players' affect, and from the film's urge to have its gloomy cake and eat it.

Jun 20, 2013

Full Review

Justin Chang

Variety

A hallucinatory thriller anchored by a deeply resonant sense of unease.

Jan 4, 2012

Full Review

Patrick Cavanaugh

The Wolfman Cometh

A captivating experience, thanks in large part to Michael Shannon's powerful performance, with the payoff only elevating the journey into something even more satisfying.

Rated: 4/5

Sep 24, 2023

Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

A suspenseful, thoughtful film, propelled by Shannon’s astounding performance.

Rated: 4/4

Mar 6, 2023

Full Review

Sean Axmaker

Stream on Demand

This is the second of five films that [director Jeff] Nichols has made with [Michael] Shannon and he gives the actor roles with a kind of depth and complexity he rarely gets elsewhere.

Feb 4, 2023

Full Review

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Synopsis

Curtis LaForche (Michael Shannon) lives in a small Ohio town with his loving wife (Jessica Chastain) and hearing-impaired daughter (Tova Stewart). Though money is tight, he and his family are very happy. But then, Curtis begins having terrifying dreams about an apocalypse that threatens them all. Rather than confiding in Samantha, he begins building a storm shelter in the backyard, and his strange behavior causes tension in their marriage and the surrounding community.

Director: Jeff Nichols
Executive Producer: Sarah Green, Brian Kavanaugh-Jones, Colin Strause, Greg Strause, Richard Rothfeld, Chris Perot, Christos V. Konstantakopoulos
Screenwriter: Jeff Nichols
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co: Strange Matter Films
Rating: R (Some Language)
Genre: Drama, Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Sep 30, 2011, Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Feb 25, 2014
Box Office (Gross USA): $1.7M

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