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berghwithanh
Reviews
Higher Ground (2011)
A Highly Subjective View
I can understand why many people will fail to see Farmiga's genius in creating this gem. It is a slow, thoughtful movie. The fact that Corinne sometimes seems to lack emotion is part of the point. She is repressed in every way, yet at times the true woman's spirit shines through - when laughing with her children, for example - and this contrast shows the depth of Farmiga's acting ability as well as her admirable restraint and daring as a director. To honestly portray a repression that is as much internally as it is externally driven - this is a fine line, and one that Farmiga walks with delicacy.
Watching Higher Ground was a deeply personal experience for me. Corinne's story could be mine in so many ways. From the music (which I knew word-for-word), to the nearly word-perfect alter calls for children (while every head is bowed and every eye is closed), to Corinne's moments of recognition (inside with you, or outside with the dogs), everything felt intensely real and honest. People who see this movie as attacking Christianity are probably not able to see their own worlds with any spirit of truth, as - for me, anyway - everything about Corinne's experiences in her church was painted accurately and with a painful degree of realism.
I watched this movie with my husband, who was raised without any religion and has a hard time understanding what it was like for me to walk away from my whole life, my whole world. This movie helped me express to him that pain, and that freedom. Like Corinne, I simply couldn't pretend anymore.
Kimssi pyoryugi (2009)
Beautiful Fable, True at its Core
I can't believe I hadn't heard of this movie until it showed up in my Netflix recommendations. Why isn't everyone talking about this movie? Why didn't it win best foreign picture? Why... Oh, right. No car chases. No sex scenes. No scenes in bars, or at football games. Subtitles. If you can enjoy a movie with subtitles, if you don't think someone has to look or act just like you to be comprehensible as a human being, if you've ever read a poem and loved it, you will likely love this movie.
I'm not even going to talk about the plot. The plot is wonderful, but not really the point. This is a movie about isolation, and human connections, and what makes us human at all. It is a social commentary, and a beautifully told fable. To call it a romantic comedy, to compare it to an American movie with a similar title, is to miss the point entirely.
Warning: before you watch this movie, you'd better figure out where you can find a local source for black bean noodles ('jajangmyun' in Korean). Even if you've never tasted them, you'll be craving them by the end of the movie. I have tasted them - fresh from a street vendor in Seoul - and I'm now nearly wild for black bean noodles.
And this basic hunger for a simple comfort food - for enjoyment of sustenance with all the associations that come with true comfort food - sums up the movie nicely.
The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008)
A satisfying character study, with a paranormal twist
This movie might be called "X-Files: The Mid-Life Crisis." And I mean that in a good way! Mulder and Scully were obviously struggling with who they had been, who they had become, and where they were going in life. The paranormal storyline is simply a mirror in which they see themselves and their relationship. Gillian Anderson is the heart and soul of the movie, and David Duchovny is at his best as a somewhat wiser Mulder still longing for a chance to save the world. A surprise cameo by Mitch Pileggi will likely confuse those new to the series, but it was a great exercise in nostalgia for an old fan.
So, confessions: yes, I am an X-Phile. Yes, I have seen every episode at least two times. Yes, I own the entire series on DVD, even seasons 8 and 9. To me, the beauty of the show was always its character development and its refusal to see life in black and white. A.D. Skinner sometimes crossed the line, but always with the best of intentions. You could never quite figure out if Alex Krycek was a bad guy or just a regular guy in a bad spot. Even the cigarette smoking man sometimes showed a little heart. Episodes often ended with as many questions as they began with - just different ones.
Though "I Want to Believe" strays a bit from the show's obvious themes (aliens, monsters), it remains true to the heart of X-Files. Scully battles to save a life - or is she needlessly prolonging a life? A pedophile priest struggles for redemption - is he a psychic, or a fake? Through it all, the characters of Mulder and Scully are there - the real theme of the movie. Their different natures collide as always, but also show themselves in the true, satisfying balance between opposites that stabilizes life and gives it meaning. They dance in the realm that any long-term couple will recognize - between conflict and surrender, between pain and joy. And all the while, the sizzle is still there.
It was a beauty to watch, and a satisfying wrap up for a classic couple. Though I have to admit, it left me wanting more X-Files. What do you say, Chris? Just one more? Ple-e-ease?! Note for the squeamish: This movie may be relationship-driven, but it still has some of the elements of a "creature feature." There are some truly gross scenes.
Note for the true believers: You won't want to miss the credits. Stay until the end. Like the movie, the little surprise at the end isn't earth-shattering, it's just - satisfying. And fun.