Adam Driver Proves He Can Do Anything in Hungry Hearts 

Roman Polanski has a new roommate in “apartment horror” and his name is Saverio Costanzo. The Italian challenger seems unfazed by comparisons to Polanski’s

, parking his psychological suspense drama steps away from “Rosemary's” legendary Dakota building. But the West 72nd St. walkup that Jude and Mina of

live in is hardly luxury. Realtors would call it “cozy,” sane people would call it suffocating. It does, however, have access to the roof and a garden and a rather bright yellow ad familiar to many Manhattanites, which reads “Depression Is A Flaw In Chemistry Not Character.”

is, on one level, a simple story about postpartum depression. It manifests itself in Mina (Italian actress Alba Rohrwacher), a U.N. worker and vegan whose zeal for natural living endangers her child's development. From her point of view, this is a horror movie where the rest of the world is trying to poison her newborn son, which she believes is an “Indigo Baby” whose maintained purity will bring a balance into the world. Jude (played by Adam Driver) is a fairly regular guy who knocked up his foreign girlfriend and figured, okay, we'll get married. They met cute when they were locked in a tiny bathroom in a Chinese restaurant. It was funny, but also horrifying, as Jude had run in there with a digestive issue and fouled up the air with his emergency excretion. The unpleasant odor that accompanied their first embarrassing flirtations should have been a sign.

feels like pointless demonizing. Mina, once lovely, is now awful—she's starving her infant, slipping him laxatives after Jude feeds him doctor-proscribed proteins. The boy's bones aren't growing, he isn't getting exposure to natural light, he runs a constant low fever. Mina crumbles when she isn't clutching her baby. They stay in their dark, crowded apartment while Jude stews and grows more frustrated. Friends don't bother calling—the couple never go out.

A change of scenery and some additional characters let the narrative breathe in the second half, which then veers somewhat into typical horror flick territory. I swear it isn't just the presence of Italians before and behind the screen, but the exaggerated behavior begins to resemble a classic giallo. (Sun-streaked churches and ridiculous interiors festooned with taxidermy seal the deal.) There are one or two moments when it goes too far—Christmas ball lens from the baby's POV is too reminiscent of an SCTV sketch for my taste—but by and large Costanzo's camera puts you RIGHT THERE in the center of airless, tiny and uncomfortable spaces.

In addition to the grainy film look on the streets of Manhattan and memories/dream sequences of a Coney Island of the Mind,

offers up a much needed treasure—it proves that all of us are right to love Adam Driver. He’s usually the bright spot in every project he's in, but other than his short moment listening to Honest Abe in

he has, let's face it, played mighty similar oddballs. Indeed, when was the last time a new performer came on the scene and so quickly established such a firm persona? It isn't unwelcome (he significantly enlivens

) but with him currently in London shooting what is rumored to be a villain role in the next

film (Darth Mysterious?), some wondered if the kid's got the chops. After seeing

I want to climb to the top of every Upper West Side apartment building and shout, “fear not, Nerdlings, for Adam Driver can do anything!!!” Jude starts out as the classic Adam Driver oddball but, as the stakes are raised, he delivers a rich and sympathetic performance. He's terrified for the welfare of his son, but he still loves his wife. Inch by inch we see him grapple with the decision he must make to bring the film to its inevitable conclusion.

There's a good chance Costanzo is readying himself for a world of hurt from some feminists and new mothers, and I'm curious to read those reactions. I won't apologize for being moved by the film, but if the magnetizing power of film is merely reinforcing my Neanderthalic patriarchal thinking, I'd like to hear about it. Nevertheless it's been a while I've had a knot in my stomach for such a sustained period of time.

walked me up the stairs to a really uncomfortable place and locked me inside with authority.

Aziz Ansari is Son of the Year After Taking His Parents to Meet Jay Z and Beyonce

See Chris O’Dowd’s Perfect Tribute to Bill Murray Day

Happy Birthday, Idris Elba: A Look Back At Some Favorite Roles

“What’ll Become of Me?” Finding the Real Patsey of 12 Years a Slave

Portraits: The Toronto International Film Festival, 2014

The World\'s Most Exclusive Madam, and Her High-Profile Clients