Review of Another Earth (2011) by Barb M — 05 Mar 2012

Seriously different from what I was expecting. Not that I had a really concrete idea for what I was going to get, but this wasn't it. Fortunately, this was loads better than I was hoping for. Intelligent and minimalistic drama with just a hint of sci-fi that ends up being significantly more than the sum of its parts.

The first thing that grabbed my attention was its direction. Glitchy, stop-start motion camera work integrated with subtle and eery electronic sounds and industrial noise. I was immediately reminded of Daron Afronosky. Particularly his earlier work like 'Pi' and 'Requiem for a Dream'. As the film continued, it became more and more apparent that director Cahill must be a huge fan of Afronosky because his direction could be substituted into one of the previously mentioned films and few would notice. Personally, I'm also a fan of Afronosky's camera work, so I liked what I saw here.

Great acting across the board. There are really only two major characters, and both Marling and Mapother own their roles. Mapother in particular is very powerful. His performance is incredibly natural despite him running the gauntlet of powerful human emotion. It often feels as if he isn't really acting. The script is fantastic. (Again) much like Aronofsky, it is minimalistic. Often running through entire scenes without a word being spoken, but all that silence does nothing but enhance the powerful dialogue we are given. Its a hard act to balance an emotionally driven and simultaneously scientifically analytical script, and this is a terrific example of how to do it.

The sci-fi aspect of the story is really more of a backdrop than anything, but it is quite intriguing. A pretty original idea that could have been a fantastic plot for a movie on its own. It does seem to bend around some of the more basic laws of astrophysics, but the ideas are nonetheless quite cool. It does offer up one of the more memorable moments in the film in which a T.V broadcast depicts a scientist trying to communicate with the newly discovered duplicate of planet Earth and comes in contact with a duplicate copy of herself on that planet. The feel of this scene is palpable, and is one of the few scenes of any movie I can recall that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

More than its acting, story or direction however is the fact that it is just an emotionally charged film. Seriously powerful in its brooding and intimate portrayal of two very emotionally damaged people. It is able to show suffering in its most beautiful form, but offset it with a message of endurance. Just very very powerful from beginning to end.

A few negatives do combine to hold it back a bit. It does seem to lag a bit at times. I respect a film that takes its time and utilizes spacing within its scenes, but I think it could have cut out ten minutes or so. Another is the last shot of the film. I won't give it away, but I really found myself wondering how it made any sense or fit into the continuity of the rest of the film.

All in all, this is a really great drama that just gets under your skin in a good way. Great script, acting, story and a really authentic film in general. Not for people who have to be constantly entertained with big bulleted plot points and spelled out ideas. This is a slow paced but intelligent and poignant drama that I very much enjoyed.