While many adore his Loki, there’s more to Tom Hiddleston’s repertoire than Marvel. In addition to his theater acclaim and Shakespearean work, here’s a mix of underrated turns and indie gems that prove Hiddleston isn’t only about that comic book mischief.
10. I Saw the Light
The fade ins and lack of narrative flow in this 2015 Hank Williams biography are very disjointed. Significant moments are treated as mere transitions and it feels like half the movie was left on the cutting room floor. The patchwork writing, directing, and editing skip half the man’s life with little rhyme or reason why. Hank wrote songs, loved his mother, women, booze, and then he died. Artistic spotlights, silhouette lighting schemes, and larger than life visual angles accentuating the man versus the myth should have been used more, but vintage reels and black and white interchanges with manager Bradley Whitford (The West Wing) fall prey to piecemeal time stamps. Brief recording sessions and Opry glory make for an ironic lack of songs, and mother Cherry Jones (24), first wife Elizabeth Olsen (Martha Marcy May Marlene), baby mama Wrenn Schmidt (Preservation), and second wife Maddie Hasson (Twisted) deserved more. What’s really sad is that Tom Hiddleston gives a fine performance, fitting the period hats, suits, and flashy fringe by matching Hank’s dialect, singing, and physicality. One would not know Hiddleston is a British RADA graduate here, yet he doesn’t have much to do and the camera refuses to stay still and make the most of his onscreen zing. Hiddleston obviously put a huge effort into becoming Hank Williams – a transformation worth much more than such a detached, arms length approach.
9. Midnight in Paris
I am not a Woody Allen fan, and Owen Wilson (Wedding Crashers) is a bumbling placeholder in this 2011 pretentious embarrassment of riches. How did this win Best Original Screenplay with such terrible in-laws, unnecessary hotel slapstick, snobby set pieces, forced intellectual comedy, and stereotypical women ideals and/or bridezillas? The mid-life crisis lessons are pretty straightforward, and the sentimental fantasy is obvious for audiences of a certain age – conflicting with the living in the now rather than a rose colored past moral of the story. The famous intelligentsia, including Hiddleston as F. Scott Fitzgerald among the stellar cast, make the eponymous period segments the best parts of the show thanks to excellent punchlines, one-on-one wisdoms, and divine deliveries. Parisian locales, scenic snapshots, vintage cars, and quality jazz are worth the artistic nominations, but the back and forth present and fictitious muses meander with who’s who “Vogue” vignettes. Our writer is never shown writing or even carrying his manuscript, pen, or paper, and it takes him so long to see what was there all along because the ninety minutes stretches thin, glossing over the most interesting aspects despite a few pleasant twists and unexpected moments. While refreshing to mature viewers compared to busy blockbusters, the superficial, flawed structure here gets by on the nostalgic novelty. Can Hiddleston please play Fitzgerald again in a full on biopic?
8. Archipelago
Like their fine collaboration in Unrelated, writer and director Joanna Hogg’s second film featuring Tom Hiddleston can be plain, dry, or slow. This is a very British, white tale of pheasant eating, vacationing rich people with problems. Fortunately, Hiddleston does daddy issues like nobody’s business, and his quarter life crossroads dampens the should be idyllic Scilly’s blustery coastal freedom. Congested interiors loom with the presence of our absentee patriarch – a beige slate of uncomfortable awkwardness and mundane moments. Tall Hiddleston hits his head on the ceiling, for his room is literally too small, yet the siblings bypass one another in this tiny space without acknowledging each other. Wine is at the ready, nothing that should be said is, nobody means what they say, and it’s all talk about the weather. This family wastes an entire conversation on where to sit in an empty restaurant because they are all so involved with their own issues, suffocated by dad’s argumentative, one sided phone calls. The arms length camera stays still as people shout from another room, which makes for interesting blocking that allows the audience to observe while mirroring the disconnected dynamics. There’s only one traditionally framed two person conversation, few close ups, and several embarrassed people walking into medium shots, questioning what to do with their lives next. Unlike the usual onscreen family happiness, this kind of realistic nuclear study is refreshing.
7. The Deep Blue Sea
Married aristocratic Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener) has an affair with devil may care pilot Tom Hiddleston in this 2011 British adaptation of the 1952 post-war play by Terrence Rattigan. This is London 1950, turbulent and emotional post-war times, and director Terence Davies (The House of Mirth) opens the melodrama with bleak thoughts, suicidal montages, and dreary reality. The first half hour is uneven, stuffy with old fashioned dialogue and delaying etiquette intercut with whirlwind bliss and breaking free of conflict. This intentionally broken narrative symbolizes the fractured minds and hearts of our lovers, but it’s too arty and disjointed. The non-linear upheaval makes it tough to appreciate the anger, regret, passion, and pain. Fortunately, the uninterrupted conversations are delightful as the players struggle to express themselves thanks to the stiff upper lip unyielding that sustained them during The Blitz but leaves them unable to cope now. Men aren’t supposed to talk about shell shock and women aren’t supposed to have sexual satisfaction, and the wonderful risk they take in doing both isn’t always dandy. Hiddleston carries off the past debonair and traumatizing war glory. He wants all her attention but remains oblivious to her extreme emotions. She needs one fix, he needs another, and neither knows how to give an inch. This would have had a larger audience without the constrained structure, but the complex character study, intersecting intrigue, and social examinations are a heavy watch for thinking film fans.
6. Thor
Kenneth Branagh (Much Ado About Nothing) directs this 2011 Marvel escapade with the titular Avenger Chris Hemsworth and Hiddleston as his mischievous brother, Loki. Humorous earthbound fish out of water plots help ground what was then an unknown cinema property, but today the New Mexico set comedy, Mary Sue perspectives, telling rather than showing science explanations, and dated CGI just for the cool panoramic zooms can feel unnecessary compared to the missed opportunity for total Asgard explorations. Fortunately, fun costumes, a heroic score, a sweet Rainbow Bridge, and great galactic visuals create a recognizable space fantasy without placing the spectacle over the frosty enemies, precious relics, and traitors in the House of Odin. While a few deleted scenes should have been kept for even more sibling rivalry and later films in the franchise somewhat reset the characterizations, Thor learns how to be a hero as budding villain Loki steals the scenes with petty deceptions and tears real, crocodile, and understandable. With family friendly parables, brotherly angst, unexpected twists, and great explosions, this Asgard debut doesn’t fall into that mind numbing, all comic book movies are the same trap. Branagh’s Shakespeare influences layer the drama with subtle details well paced amid the action set pieces. There are choices to be made for good or ill and time for reflection before and after the wild finale. Overall, this trusts in its fantasy, creates memorable characters, and remains fun with repeat viewings.
5. Kong: Skull Island
This 2017 MonsterVerse prequel has its flaws. The focus is messy with Vietnam, horrors of war, personal vengeance, monster monstrosities, and awe-inspiring adventure. Between photographers, trackers, angry military, government officials, and stranded scientists there are far too many undeveloped characters walking to and fro amid convoluted information dumps and no time to actually explore. It really seems like this is just storyboards of cool things for Kong to do, and that’s okay because this uncharted Pacific isle is brimming with action, superb monster graphics, colossal silhouettes, and dangerous creatures. Old school cool comes early and often with diegetic classic rock, retro camera flashes, and Nixon jokes accenting gritty zooms, fiery explosives, and toxic green gases. Top billed Hiddleston, however, inexplicably goes from a rugged bad ass asking for five times the mercenary money to sunshine blonde matinee idol Tom Hiddleston. The mysteriously decommissioned tracker suddenly cares enough to question the mission motives, but any previous wartime or familial issues remain throwaway lines while our tracker takes charge but gets lost. Although he has the best gas mask samurai glory moment, the would be hero has no winking Indiana Jones moment nor does he take off his shirt. Why hold back when you can go all the way on the eye candy? This monster money maker has heaps of knockdown, drag outs and enjoyable action for everyone.
4. Crimson Peak
Spooky unreliable narrator bookends, dime novel embellishments, and a tall, dark, and handsome Hiddleston hearken back to Hammer glory and gothic romance of old in writer and director Guillermo Del Toro’s (Pan’s Labyrinth) 2015 supernatural melodrama starring Mia Wasikowska (Jane Eyre) and Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty). Poor marketing would have viewers believe this is a ghostly by the numbers, terror a minute horror movie slice and dice, but here murderous intentions, gory deaths, and household dread mix with whirlwind romance, period panache, marital unease, scandalous slaps, and somber siblings obviously up to no good. Hiddleston’s Sir Thomas Sharpe is meek, swayed by the dominating women in his life. He plays the charming part in his sister’s plans, dreamy and sympathetic but stunted and corrupted with a top hat that’s too big, a crumbling mansion, and failed engineering dreams. Tell tale ghosts and secrets in the eponymous clay acerbate the misplaced loyalties, conflicts, accountability, and choices as splendid macabre, haunting visuals, emotional gazes, and delicious scene chewing escalate to poison tea and bloody cleavers. Hiddleston also looks a lot like Peter Cushing here, and I’d love to see him as a young Grand Moff Tarkin in a Star Wars project! Some demented love and paranormal help may be predictable, but the real shock here is why anyone ever thought a Victorian piece was going to be a contemporary splatter-fest.
3. High-Rise
Pathologist Tom Hiddleston moves into a prestigious new building designed by architect Jeremy Irons (Reversal of Fortune) alongside Luke Evans (Beauty and the Beast) below and Sienna Miller (Layer Cake) above in director Ben Wheatley and writer Amy Jump’s (A Field in England) 2015 adaption of the J.G. Ballard novel. Technological problems accelerate the high and low resentments, dividing floors against each other for food and necessities as the excess explodes into violence and anarchy. The advanced tower gives and takes, a concrete witness to lust and sloth. Those at the top commandeer booze and cake while it’s dog eat dog at the bottom, and those downstairs record the mayhem – retaining Ballard’s prophetic warnings on media distorting our lives a la the way we look at the world through our smartphones. Names and dialogue have dual meanings, and like the past participle lain, Hiddleston’s buttoned up Laing lies low, detached from the outside world in his apartment full of moving boxes said to contain “sex and paranoia” or “nothing.” He gets trapped in a mirrored elevator and dislikes the stairs – both tools to move up or down – and Laing’s suave facade gives way to everything gray. British stoicism and our accustomed numbness to extremes onscreen mean High-Rise isn’t as shocking as A Clockwork Orange but comparisons with David Cronenberg’s Shivers are intriguing. This isn’t an entertaining or happy viewing experience but an intense little dystopian character study.
2. The Night Manager
Emmy winning director Susanne Bier (Bird Box) opens this impressive 2016 six hour production of John Le Carre’s 1993 novel with hotbed protests, corrupt entrepreneurs, seductive clientele, confidential documents, and cinematic espionage. Simmering melodies mirror the dangerous edge while the excellent credits merge explosive clouds with alluring diamonds and champagne. Weapons deals and bureaucratic paperwork lead to bruises, fatalities, and consequences. This is a more nuanced potboiler than Spectre, but could Hiddleston ever be the next 007? Not in the gritty vein as Daniel Craig, no, but as a return to the more suave, lighthearted Roger Moore era, maybe. At times, it seems like Golden Globe winner Hiddleston is playing his blue steel self, but our eponymous hotelier hibernates in luxurious shadows with a controlled facade for every situation; be it soldier, leather jacket, or tailored suits. The camera plays to his strengths – panning up as he struts and filling the frame with close shaves, shirtless muscles, and steamy sheets. As the debonair front man gathering sleight of hand intel and infiltrating Hugh Laurie’s (House) lavish enterprise, he’s cool on the fly with the right wink or smile. A guy can get used to this kind of deception, but the well paced narrative balances the overarching mission details and personal in too deep as the undercover goes off script and the international cat and mouse comes face to face.
1. Only Lovers Left Alive
Tilda Swinton (We Need to Talk About Kevin) is Eve to Hiddleston’s Adam in Jim Jarmusch’s (Mystery Train) thought provoking 2013 vampire tale. Ritualistic blood drinking highs reveal their true nature, but the euphoria ends quickly and not all revel in this necessary fix. Spooky, noir atmosphere and a moody color palette anchor the subtle black comedy, social statements, and melancholy analysis while the addiction subtext layers the sardonic script and quotable banter. Depressed, Byronic, and brooding but surprisingly deadpan Adam dresses up as Dr. Faust to obtain his blood supply, but he has had it with humanity’s so-called zombie apathy and requests an elusive wooden bullet. The apart lovers reunite in desolate Detroit, where Eve draws Adam from his vintage clutter and musical solitude with chess, nature, and dancing. If they are wasting time on self obsession, then what are we doing with our lives? Despite their seemingly superior longevity, our quantum theory and Einstein discussing couple end up on the lamb when reckless vampires endanger their O Negative chain, and their predatory nature must surface when it’s down to that precious last drop. Unexplained plot holes, silent montages, and seemingly aimless, nothing much happening will be a big no thanks for today’s fast paced audiences. However, for depth that stays with you and mental stimulation that takes more than one viewing, everyone should give Only Lovers Left Alive a chance.
