‘Reptile’: Wasted Potential in Fincher-esque Thriller [TIFF]

First things first, can we acknowledge how great of an actor Benicio del Toro is? He has a staggering list of performances in such films as “Traffic,” “The Usual Suspects,” “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” “Che,” “21 Grams,” and “Sicario.”

With that being said, for 70% of Grant Singer’s “Reptile,” which stars del Toro, I was invested, but then it gets bogged down by an irritating plot twist. A real shame since the film had real potential.

“Reptile” stars del Toro (predictably great) as a New England detective who works to solve the murder of a real estate agent. Justin Timberlake stars as the dead girl’s suspected husband and Alicia Silverstone plays del Toro’s wife.

This is Singer’s directorial debut; his background is in music videos, and he’s clearly going for a Fincher-esque vibe here, especially with its extremely meticulous camerawork and the desaturated yellow look of the whole thing.

For a while, I was highly engrossed by this detective thriller, but, as the dramatic stakes kept getting upped, its 134-minute runtime got way too convoluted. It tries to be too clever.

I don’t want to ruin anything for you — the film will be streaming on Netflix three weeks from now — but the plot lacks any sort of logic. It’s infuriating to witness, due to the the excellent setup — with strong character, suspense and vibe.

I also have to mention Justin Timberlake’s acting. I’ve liked some of his past performances (“The Social Network,” Inside Llewyn Davis,” “Alpha Dog”), but he’s very flat here. His role calls for moody intrigue, but his performance, especially the delivery, is damn-near wooden.