marais-alexander

Wow. What a powerful, moving, scary, and relatable story. Horror has always been my forte, but this micro budgeted beauty is far more than horror. Anna Ishida is excellent as the lost spirit, who even in death loses something more. The film is stripped of traditional storytelling, and is very art-house so know what you're headed in for. It's not one of those straight- forward, clunk-headed horror action pictures. It takes time to build suspense, its character(s), and its haunting and surreal atmosphere. What is especially haunting is, and this is coming from someone who worked with a shaman, it seems ultra-realistic to accounts of dead person's experiences (the little the clairvoyants in this world can understand). I could actually see this being the experience of a spirit who clearly is bound to this world by a force she thinks she cannot control, but in the end realizes she can. It's a great film about finding out who you really are, and about the beast in all of us. I hope to see more from this director, and this was a solid effort. Encore.

While I was initially hesitant about the piece, I went into the theatre leery and came out amazed. This is an awesome film, very, very moving, very subtle, complex, mysterious, and deep. It's not everyone's cup of tea, but for those who appreciate more than just violence, sex, and death it's a thoughtful, funny, and tender reflection of a life never really lived until the birth of a revelation. It's even a bit dark at some points, and very, very surreal. The cast of people aboard alone is a reason to see it. The actors picked blend into their roles, and you aren't wondering who X playing Y is, they're just Y. It's also quite erotic, but lacks the graphic sex scenes and in-your-face psychosexual drama most films of this kind require. The cinematography is also something to write home about. Beautiful visual effects. For anyone with a visual eye, this is quite a treat. It's the kind of movie to take your girlfriend to, your mother, even the grandmother. There's nothing about this film that thoughtful viewers won't love. It's a surreal, fresh, funny, and fabulous masterpiece. A milestone in Italian cinema. The only other Italian film I've seen is Mother of Tears, which is quite different. But I'll be sure to keep an eye out for more post-Fellini cinema. It's quite something. Just go for it. 10/10.