20 Brilliant Mind-F*ck Movies

16. The Machinist

Paramount Classics

Christian Bale€™s most transformative performance to date came in The Machinist. The actor lost 60 pounds to portray the emaciated insomniac Trent Reznik, who is a long way down the road to completely loosing his marbles from the very start of the movie.

After being ousted by his colleagues for causing a bloody workplace mishap, Trevor€™s personal life begins unravelling. Mysterious post-it notes pop up around his apartment. A blood-like gunge starts pouring out of his freezer. Accidents seem to wait for him at every turn and he begins to think that the world is conspiring against him.

As a viewer, you know from the off that Trevor€™s sanity is disintegrating. There€™s nothing you can do about it, of course, so you begin to look for clues. What€™s really happening here? What€™s his imagination and what€™s real life? Of course, there€™s no answers, so this one will stick with you for a while.

Contributor
Contributor

Film & TV journo. Quite tall.