Review of Upstream Color (2013) by Justin H — 25 Apr 2013

The film that I had been fervently waiting for, finally was procured through a P2P site. As much as I'd like to have paid for this, I had to resort to such act as our country doesn't screen Independent films.

Actor/Cinematographer/Composer/Director/Editor/Producer/Writer Shane Carruth who previously gave us the byzantine film Primer, has yet again delivered to his reputation in Upstream Color. A bizarre narrative and an equally peculiar premise/theme this film stands up to its hype in the Sundance Film Festival. In a nutshell, the film is about two people, Kris (Amy Seimetz) and Jeff (Carruth), whose lives and behaviors are affected by a complex parasite- with them remaining utterly oblivious to it. The parasite has a three-stage life cycle in which it passes from humans to pigs and then to orchids. Carruth eloquently calls this the "worm-pig-orchid life cycle." They get attracted to each other in a very strange way, and their life is taken over (influenced) by some another entity completely.

Now, to the ceremonies of praising/disparaging the film. Firstly, if you disliked "Tree of Life", "A Serious Man" and film of that ilk and genre, stay out of this, I mean don't even watch it...you won't understand shit!

The theme and the idea of the film is very visceral yet very strange...very very strange..I mean the film revolves around the idea of parasites transferred from human to pigs then orchids and the whole process affecting life of the ex-host.

Undoubtedly, the best film of the year, this film transcends the normal viewing experience and literally overwhelms you. The pace at which the narrative progresses is hypnotic and engrossing unlike his last film. The small cast that guides the story forward is excellent with Amy giving a powerful performance, drawing out every emotional nuances. The editing could have been done more meticuluosly, make it less incoherent for the viewers. But again, the film could've turned out very differently. So, for the people with a weird affinity towards obfuscated plot this is a must watch.

(Okay, that's it, I won't elaborate further...watch it..and then read my upcoming essay on this film which will be up probably by next week after I re-watch the film).