When there’s a car accident on a local highway, the viewer doesn’t want to watch two anchors sit there and describe it. Instead, they want the aftermath, the broken windshield and dented metal.  If there’s a drive-by shooting, they want pictures of the victims, videos of bullet holes in wall.  This is where Lou Bloom steps in, the first reporter to the scene and a TMZ-type reporter for urban mayhem.

‘Nightcrawler’, chronicles the life of Bloom, an aspiring video journalist who spends his nights cruising the streets of L.A., hunting and prying to capture violent crimes or accidents on his video camera, in order to sell the footage to news stations.  He has no background in videography, yet in today’s age of blogs and smart phones, he does not seem to need one.

Bloom— played by the shockingly transformative Jake Gyllenhaal — is the poster child of motivational speeches.  A smart man, hard worker and sociopath captivated in the principle of capitalistic values of business, Bloom will stop at nothing in order to reach the top.  Bloom’s ambition lives by one of the most memorable lines of the film, his catchphrase: “If you want to win lottery, you have to make the money to buy a ticket.”

After learning of the money TV stations pay, for footage of crimes or accidents, he soon becomes enthralled and captivated to rise in the market. Starting out as an amateur freelance videographer, Lou begins to learn the ropes of the field, capturing what news stations desire to attract viewers: violence.

“Violence is newsworthy.  If news organizations have images or videos of violent crimes, they’re most likely going to show it, whether in the paper or on television.  People want to see whatever story the news anchors are talking about,” journalism professor Chris Bury, said.  “There’s this school of thought that news ratings are driven by violence.

After capturing the aftermath of a car accident, Lou develops a partnership with Nina, the local TV news producer, played by Rene Russo.  As the ratings at the station begin to drop, Nina relies her trust in Lou to bring the viewers back by capturing crime in L.A. in a way never seen before, teaching Lou the type of violence that sells: suburban crime and home invasions.

“One of the first things you realize about the news is that it’s unusual,” Bury said.  “If you have a shooting in a suburb versus a shooting in a gang related neighborhood, the news stations are going to report the suburb story because it’s more shocking and less common.”

As Lou captures more footage and eventually earns enough to buy a new car, equipped with a police scanner and GPS and a personal driver. With a faster car and quicker routes, he arrives at the scenes before the police, manipulating them in his favor.  As the film unfolds, Lou’s morality for human life diminishes as his rating rise.  Nina and Lou become engulfed in sensationalizing violence, shaping the news in their favor and spinning stories with clever editing.

“Unfortunately there are news organizations that can glamorize violence in some sense.  People love a narrative, with photos and videos.  It’s become more than just facts,” Bury said.

“Every journalist knows the phrase, ‘if it bleeds, it leads.’  It’s unfortunate, but it’s true.”

“Nightcrawler” presents an extreme and stylized reflection of the news industry.  While the rated R film covers quite violent imagery, writer and director Dan Gilroy is hesitant to show any, leaving the viewer hungry for those graphic images of blood and gore.

Powered by a remarkably fresh anti-hero that’s equally terrifying and funny, Lou Bloom becomes to L.A. what Travis Bickle is to New York City.  It could be said that “Nightcrawler” is as much of a mirror to capitalism as it is to the news, because if you want to see one of the most thrilling films of 2014, you have to make the money to buy a ticket.