Destroyer

Kidman has always been a chameleon, but in this case, she doesn’t merely change her color; she disappears into an entirely new skin, rearranging her insides to fit the character’s tough hide.

It's a mechanical noir dressed up as something more substantial and this is especially felt in an ending that drowns in unearned profundity.

Kidman brings such compelling conviction to her role as a tormented detective that she single handedly imbues the film with urgency and authenticity.

Lost in the shuffle of award season comes a police procedural so hard-boiled it could break your teeth.

Rarely are women cast in these roles of screwed-up, hard-boiled antiheroes with a lifetime of regrets to make up for, and even if this is your basic LA noir, it's well-executed and satisfying in all the ways it should be.

The grim relentlessness with which "Destroyer" seesaws between time frames - as if to make sure that no state of abjection, past or present, goes unexplored - wore me out long before the endlessly protracted finish.

The movie takes its time to provide a satisfying rationale, occasionally suffering from a sluggish pace and sleepy atmosphere that lessens the underlying mystery...

Ultimately feels affected in its aspirations toward making some profound statement about self-abasement and sacrifice, making one feel like rejecting the whole thing despite some striking individual moments.