McVeigh

Appropriately bleak & cold true-tale "McVeigh" chronicles the months prior to domestic terrorist Timothy McVeigh (Alfie Allen) killing 167 folk (inc 19 children) in the cowardly 1995 truck-bombing of an Oklahoma Federal Govt building. Co-writer (with first-timer Alex Gioulakis) / director Mike Ott evokes decent foreboding as McVeigh & accomplice Terry Nichols (Brett Gelman) build their bomb with no apparent direct support or direction from the wider neo-nazi community represented by Tracy Letts & Anthony Carrigan - tho Ott does ambiguously hint at that possibility. Well performed & well made, it still leaves the feeling that this awful story has more layers to it that are yet to be told.

Seen this and was stoked. With a good cast but man it was slow as molasses. And I understand slow burns and what not but the writing was just atrocious. That may be too much or too harsh because I've seen way worse but it just seemed that the writing was minimal to say the least. Long drawn out scenes trying to build tension but it just didn't work. Felt bad for the actors a few times because they are all good. Bummer. Six out of ten still because I watched it all.....barely.

Tracey Letts always is good and was able to lead his role, even though it was from a seat the majority of the time. Tough not too see ole Game of Thrones in Alfie.

Such a poorly made film. The writing and directing in particular are truly bad. Turns out the writer and director are the same clueless man. A Mr Ott. I hope Mr Ott has a day job. Perhaps it is true that morons like McVeigh have no friends, no personality and no prospects. Mindless cowards who find purpose in hate. Yet a movie about a dull witted, friendless, stupid man does not have to be the same. This film is really boring. We gain not one ounce of insight into McVeigh. He is on the phone to somebody. A lot. We never know who. The photography is as bad as the writing. Dull shots framed in dullness. It is hard to say about the actors. They were doing what they were paid to do, which is mostly nothing. It could have been a contender, to try and give the viewers some insight into this mindless and soulless act of murder and destruction, but that did not happen. If you are looking for even the tiniest shred of insight, it is not here. I watched this turkey so you don't have to. Give it a hard pass. You will have missed absolutely nothing. I only gave it a 3 because it is, in a small and sad way, at least an effort at understanding stupid, aimless and lost men like McVeigh. But F for effort.

"McVeigh" (2024) attempts to chronicle the descent of Timothy McVeigh into domestic terrorism, but ultimately fails to provide a compelling or insightful portrayal of its subject. Directed by Mike Ott, the film had the potential to explore the psychological and ideological motivations behind one of the most infamous crimes in American history. Instead, it delivers a hollow, underdeveloped narrative that neither informs nor engages.

One of the film's biggest flaws is its lack of character development. McVeigh's disillusionment with the U. S. government-particularly his anger towards the federal response at Waco-is a crucial aspect of his radicalization, yet the movie barely touches on it. Without a deeper look into his beliefs and frustrations, McVeigh comes across as a one-dimensional figure, reducing the film's impact. The supporting characters are similarly neglected, existing only to move the plot forward rather than adding any real depth or nuance.

As a thriller, McVeigh is disappointingly flat. There's little tension, and the pacing drags, making it a struggle to stay engaged. The lack of emotional weight or psychological insight leaves the film feeling empty, as though it merely goes through the motions without saying anything meaningful. Even Alfie Allen's performance as McVeigh feels restrained, likely due to the script's failure to provide any real substance for him to work with.

Overall, McVeigh squanders its potential. Instead of offering a gripping or thought-provoking look at its subject, it settles for a superficial retelling that neither informs nor captivates. A film tackling such a disturbing and complex event should leave an impact-this one doesn't.

This movie was marketed as a "psychological thriller", yet there was nothing "psychological" or "thrilling" about it.

The film did very little to explain McVeigh and Nichols' backstory, and show us who they were and what they believed. Instead, it stumbles along from scene to scene, almost like they made things up as they went along. And then it just ends.

Overall I found the movie unengaging, uninformative, and boring. It was a half-assed hollow shell of what it should have been. Makes you think they were trying to be "first" instead of "best"

I did think that Anthony Carrigan's performance of Andreas Strassmeir was very good. Too bad the writers couldn't do a better job of telling the whole story, though.