Review of Upstream Color (2013) by Nick O — 19 Jan 2014

Shane Carruth does sci-fi as science fair project: when it works, we're wowed. And Carruth gets to the wonder by putting his leaning toward detail, care and cutting out loose ends without forsaking the immediate rewards of emotion and character. His brilliant 2003 debut "Primer" punched up the bugs of Hollywood time travel with only a shoestring budget and the inside of a garage. Having starred in, written, directed, photographed and scored "Primer", it also marked the versatility of a new indie talent.

It took a decade for Carruth to follow it with "Upstream Color", but it was worth it. Even more so than his previous feature, "Upstream" is a film of tragic beauty, incorporating psychological themes of nature, technology, relationships, loneliness and paranoia through the kaleidoscopic lens of Terrence Malick. Starring Carruth and Amy Seimetz as two people helping each other to understand the experimental testing both involuntary underwent, it's a symphony of ideas, of things and people coming together while learning to give up and let go. It's a wholly original and undeniably beautiful experience that pulls you into the mystery of an event, its aftermath and side effects, by pushing the sky away and rewriting the rules. (95/100).