Item: Reptile
Rating: 8.1
Author: NextFlicks

Detective Tom Nichols must investigate the murder of a young woman but as more information comes to light, it seems not everything is as clear cut as he first thought in the crime thriller, Reptile.

Reptile is a crime thriller movie by director Grant Singer and is his first feature film.

He collaborated on the screenplay with Benjamin Brewer and Benicio del Toro, and together with Brewer, crafted the story.

The film showcases del Toro in a starring role, with a supporting cast that includes Justin Timberlake, Alicia Silverstone, Eric Bogosian, Ato Essandoh, Domenick Lombardozzi, and Michael Pitt.

It premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2023, got a week in the cinema and then headed to Netflix on September 29.

Clearly, this is more than your run-of-the-mill thriller but what is it all about and is it worth watching?

What Is Reptile About?

Tom Nichols (Benicio Del Toro) is a homicide detective who is married to Judy (Alicia Silverstone) and Judy's uncle is Tom's Captain in the police department. With a tight-knit bunch of cops who also socialise together, things are going well for the Nichols.

Then Summer Elswick, a young real estate agent, is found dead in the home she and her boyfriend, Will Grady (Justin Timberlake) were listing and it's all hands on deck to find the murderer.

In the mix of potential suspects are Will as the boyfriend, Eli Philips, a creepy guy with a grudge against Grady and Sam Gifford who was Summer's ex-husband.

So far so good. However, as the investigation gets underway Detective Tom Nichols starts to suspect that the murder is not as cut and dry as it seems. As more information comes to light about the brutal murder, Tom begins to realise that his world, and the people in it, may not be as idyllic as he first thought.

So can he catch the killer? Yes, but what will he have to sacrifice in his own life to do it?

Reptile Official Trailer

Is Reptile Worth Watching?

Reptile is a movie that I was really looking forward to. I mean seriously, Benicio Del Toro can do no wrong and to also see Alicia Silverstone flex her acting chops was a treat.

The story is excellent, underpinned by a constant state of tension and unease despite nothing overtly dangerous happening. It just oozes a sense of ‘something isn't quite right here' and pretty much when the penny drops for Del Toro, it also drops for us the viewer as the pieces of the puzzle click into place.

This is a movie that takes its sweet time to peel back the layers of just how everyone and everything in the murder is connected. There are no stupid giveaways and no obvious clues, in fact, it's an incredibly well-developed story that keeps you hanging.

At nearly two and a quarter hours, you would think that things would drag at some point but nope, each time you think you've got the measure of what exactly is happening, there's a twist and it's probably one you didn't see coming.

My only gripe is that I didn't love the ending. Sure, it wrapped things up but somehow I needed something more. An extra few minutes with a proper resolution would have been great. That said, you're not left with any real threads which is better than the alternative.

Overall, Reptile is a slow burner that draws you in and keeps you there until the credits roll. It is absolutely a cut above most other Netflix offerings in the genre and if you get to sit and watch Benicio Del Toro do what he does best for two hours then it can't be all bad.