Like the Water

LIKE THE WATER is a remarkable film, and not in a "it's very good FOR AN INDIE PRODUCTION" kind of way. It's certainly an excellent example of how you can make a really compelling film with little to no money, but I feel like it stands as a great film just on its own, with no context about how it was made.

I found this film to be a beautiful, beautiful piece of art. It's an incredibly simple story, told very simply, but it's told with such gentleness and grace. The dialogue is very sparse and realistic, the photography is gorgeous, and the acting is mostly very good. Caitlin Fitzgerald in particular is a home run.

I love the sparse, very non-didactic style of the dialogue. Another review here on IMDb complains about this, but I think it's one of the film's main strengths. It doesn't spell everything out for you, and it doesn't need to. You don't need to know right off the bat how Kat died or who Lola is, because you're fully immersed in the world of the film from minute one, and you're going to find these things out as a matter of course.

In short, I loved the film; easily one of the best films of 2012. If you have the opportunity to see it, do so.