SIFF: Another Earth
Another Earth is included in the Sci-Fi and Beyond pathway in the SIFF catalog and, technically, that classification is correct. But what the movie is, really, is a meditation on fate and forgiveness, and the science fictional element--a second, parallel Earth slowly approaching our own--provides a metaphor and jumping-off point for ideas about second chances and alternate lives. And the film left me breathless.
Rhoda Williams is a brilliant teenager with bright future as a science major. Driving home one night, she hears a news item about the aforementioned new Earth, just visible to the naked eye. She looks out her car window, fascinated, and plows into another car bearing a family of three. The wife and child in said car are killed; John, the husband, is in a coma; Rhoda, a minor, is sent to jail. Four years later, when Rhoda is released, the new planet is closer, and Rhoda's dreams are dust. She takes a menial job and obsesses about her crime. She goes to apologize to John, and their meeting changes both of their fates. Over all the action hangs that other Earth and, ultimately, it becomes pivotal to Rhoda's life and choices.
The film is a study in minimalism. The dialog is spare, the story is economical, even the sets are stripped of anything not immediately relevant to story or character. The script is smart and respects the audience's intelligence, allowing the viewer to come to conclusions along with characters, and making emotional moments that much stronger. And each turn in the story is just left of where I expected it to go, which made it that much more interesting. Every performance is spot-on.
For me, the tension of when decisions would be made and truths would be told kept me holding my breath every step of the way. Brit Marling, who plays Rhoda, and William Mapother, who plays John, each give wonderful, understated performances.
Science fiction geek nitpick: Watching this film, the physics of the situation with this other Earth made me crazy. The gravitational forces of one planet approaching another would tear everything to bits. The script barely touches on the physics and the fact is that they don't matter. They're not the point of the story and are, from a narrative point of view, irrelevant.
What is relevant is the human story. The heart of the picture is Rhoda's journey. And it's totally a trip worth taking. (Fox Searchlight has picked up the film for distribution. I highly recommend it.)
ETA: Marling, who cowrote the script, and Mapother are interviewed about the film here and touch on my physics quibble.
Rhoda Williams is a brilliant teenager with bright future as a science major. Driving home one night, she hears a news item about the aforementioned new Earth, just visible to the naked eye. She looks out her car window, fascinated, and plows into another car bearing a family of three. The wife and child in said car are killed; John, the husband, is in a coma; Rhoda, a minor, is sent to jail. Four years later, when Rhoda is released, the new planet is closer, and Rhoda's dreams are dust. She takes a menial job and obsesses about her crime. She goes to apologize to John, and their meeting changes both of their fates. Over all the action hangs that other Earth and, ultimately, it becomes pivotal to Rhoda's life and choices.
The film is a study in minimalism. The dialog is spare, the story is economical, even the sets are stripped of anything not immediately relevant to story or character. The script is smart and respects the audience's intelligence, allowing the viewer to come to conclusions along with characters, and making emotional moments that much stronger. And each turn in the story is just left of where I expected it to go, which made it that much more interesting. Every performance is spot-on.
For me, the tension of when decisions would be made and truths would be told kept me holding my breath every step of the way. Brit Marling, who plays Rhoda, and William Mapother, who plays John, each give wonderful, understated performances.
Science fiction geek nitpick: Watching this film, the physics of the situation with this other Earth made me crazy. The gravitational forces of one planet approaching another would tear everything to bits. The script barely touches on the physics and the fact is that they don't matter. They're not the point of the story and are, from a narrative point of view, irrelevant.
What is relevant is the human story. The heart of the picture is Rhoda's journey. And it's totally a trip worth taking. (Fox Searchlight has picked up the film for distribution. I highly recommend it.)
ETA: Marling, who cowrote the script, and Mapother are interviewed about the film here and touch on my physics quibble.