Somewhere inside Another Earth there exists a
worthwhile indie drama that has a bit of promise. Marling, who also wrote the
film, has genuine appeal and you can see why she's become a hot name around
Hollywood. This is an actress who could really be something in a few years,
provided she finds the right projects. There's no reason she couldn't fill some
of the roles going to Felicity Jones or pick up the scraps from Jennifer
Lawrence's table. Likewise, I think director Mike Cahill (also co-writer) shows
some talent behind the camera and a knack for finding the right shot for the
situation, heightening the drama in the already tense atmosphere of his film.
Both of them will go on to bigger and better things...
...which is good because Another
Earth is a convoluted mess. The problem with this type of indie drama
is the hook; in order to set your film apart from a glutted market of similar
films, only a few of which receive any kind of mass marketing, you have to come
up with something different that
brings attention. If you're a studio executive and Mike Cahill is pitching this
film to you (which I know is not the way it works for these films but go along
with me), you're saying something to the effect of, "Okay, so you've got a
messed up relationship between two opposites who are brought together by
tragedy. That's great. But tell me, why am I going to see your movie instead of Like Crazy or Away We Go? Oh, there's a
subplot involving a second earth that's (inexplicably) getting closer and
closer to our own planet? Bingo!" The end result is essentially a sci-fi
concept film and as I've said before, concept films, even artsy ones like this,
rarely work. Science fiction is tough enough to get right (and that's
coming from a huge sci-fi nerd) and it's even tougher when you've got an inexperienced
hand guiding the ship. Cahill and Marling pay little attention to the details
surrounding their sci-fi subplot and as a result, these sloppy elements are
almost all I could focus on.
Don't get me wrong; there are a number issues with this film that
have nothing to do with the haphazard hook. Every actor outside of Marling and
Mapother ranges in talent from, "extra who was given a couple of
lines" to "professional actor who should probably start looking for
another profession." None of these supporting players are given much
screen time (mercifully) but when they are...ouch. All of the characters are
extremely shallow, making their transitions seem insignificant. And the
storyline itself is so slow and unclear that I actually had to go online and
search forums in order to piece together the film's intent.
But none of these issues hold a candle to the sheer idiocy of the
subplot. I pride myself on my ability to not hold movies to the laws of
reality. It's a movie; things are going to happen that could never happen in
real life and honestly, that's the way we all want it more often than not. All
I ask of a film is that it either A.) Stay within the realm of "reasonably
realistic enough to pretend I don't notice the inaccuracies" or B.) Outs
itself in the beginning as a film that should in no way shape or form be taken
seriously. But I would maintain it is impossible to sit through Another Earth without
asking some real questions. For example, in the beginning earth 2 is a tiny
blue dot in the far distance but by the end of the film, the planet is a giant
colossus dominating the skyline both day and night. No reason is given for this
change nor does it ever seem to bother the inhabitants of either planet that
they are headed for, you know, a catastrophic collision. This made me more than
a little crazy. Another major issue comes along with the whole, "win a
seat on the first trip to earth 2" which is organized by a Richard
Branson-like billionaire. So, basically, we're to believe that a new planet is
rapidly invading our orbit and not only does NASA not make a trip of their own,
they're totally cool with renting out their equipment to a rebel businessman.
Even a cursory line about this being the "first commercial trip" to
earth 2 would have sufficed but apparently this never occurred to anyone
involved with the making of the film. These (and many others) are stupid mistakes that only
come along when a filmmaker doesn't know how to handle a given topic or doesn't
care enough to try and make the subplot blend with the main theme. And if the
people behind a film don't care enough to make their film work, then why should
anyone else care enough to see it?
Grade: D
Did you like the musical saw scene in Another Earth?
ReplyDeleteYou can hear (and download) music from it on the composer's website http://www.scottmunsonmusic.com/news/music-in-film-another-earth-soundtrack