Redemption in a Parallel Universe

Brit Marling, “Another Earth”

Dir. Mike Cahill, with Brit Marling and William Mapother

There are science fiction movies, and there are tales of sin and redemption, but the genre and the story type just don’t seem to go together very much.  Another Earth, the 2011 film by freshman director Mike Cahill, combines the two elegantly.  The film, co-written by Cahill with a major writing contribution from Brit Marling, takes a relatively simple but intriguing science fiction concept and leverages it into a subtle and heart-wrenching exploration of some of the most devastating and difficult of human experiences. [Read more...]

“Forgiveness is free…but you have to ASK for it.”

Robert Duvall, Lucas Black, and Bill Murray, “Get Low”

Dir. Aaron Schneider, with Robert Duvall, Bill Murray, Sissy Spacek, and Lucas Black

When it was in theaters I raved about Get Low, the first feature-length effort from director Aaron Schneider, to all my friends, but as far as I know the only ones who actually saw it were those I physically dragged to the theater – that, or to my living room this week, when I got my hands on the DVD. The film is an overlooked low-budget gem, based on a true-life anecdote about Felix (Bush) Breazeale, an eccentric, depression-era Tennessee recluse who threw his own funeral party while still alive to enjoy it.

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