The film is bizarre. We're introduced to our main character through fragmented shots of her from her knees down, then of her face off-center, and of her feet while walking on cracked pavement. We also see her walking the sidewalk past manicured bushes and trees, a shot that is repeated throughout the movie.
While the opening credits are playing, we hear soulful music. Then, the music stops and contrasts with the stark bleakness of shots that immediately make us feel off-center. Like something isn't right. As an audience, we don't see the whole picture. We are at the mercy of the cinematographer just as much as the narrator, waiting for them to divulge the story, a story for which we somehow know there is much to come.
Immediately after the opening credits we are told by Kay, our narrator and protagonist, of her fear of trees. In particular, the tree in the backyard of her parents' home where her sister was "princess;" she feared the roots of the tree would reach the house. This tree is to serve as a metaphor for the entire film.
The first few scenes lead us to believe this film is about romance and destiny as Kay visits a psychic who tells her about the man with a question mark on his forehead. She finds the man and they begin their romance on the concrete floor of a parking garage.
Tree Oblivious to Kay's fear of trees, the ever-innocent boyfriend plants a sapling in their backyard to commemorate their 13 month (I think) anniversary. As an audience, we didn't get to experience any of this first year with them, but we are aware that something has changed. Their backyard, a barren ground full of cracks, is a reflection of Kay's soul. She has kept herself unattached from others; the coworkers at work who mock her, her family and, after this tree incident, her boyfriend. But this tree is an infestation on Kay's life.
The sapling is a foreshadowing of Kay's loss of control as her sister, Sweetie, enters her home. As soon as we meet Sweetie, she consumes the attention of all the characters. The life and roots of the tree represent the evils of attention-seeking Sweetie and of Kay's broken childhood coming back to haunt her.
Let's not give any more attention to Sweetie.
There is something truly unique and charismatic about this film. I didn't leave the film feeling as if the makers tried too hard; they didn't experiment for the sake of feeling like an art film. The cinematic choices made were deliberate and effective. They moved the story forward in ways that a simple plot unfolding could not have. The broken pavement, assumingly from roots beneath, the trees, the escape from civilization. It all worked.
More at aMovieaCountryaJourney.com.
While the opening credits are playing, we hear soulful music. Then, the music stops and contrasts with the stark bleakness of shots that immediately make us feel off-center. Like something isn't right. As an audience, we don't see the whole picture. We are at the mercy of the cinematographer just as much as the narrator, waiting for them to divulge the story, a story for which we somehow know there is much to come.
Immediately after the opening credits we are told by Kay, our narrator and protagonist, of her fear of trees. In particular, the tree in the backyard of her parents' home where her sister was "princess;" she feared the roots of the tree would reach the house. This tree is to serve as a metaphor for the entire film.
The first few scenes lead us to believe this film is about romance and destiny as Kay visits a psychic who tells her about the man with a question mark on his forehead. She finds the man and they begin their romance on the concrete floor of a parking garage.
Tree Oblivious to Kay's fear of trees, the ever-innocent boyfriend plants a sapling in their backyard to commemorate their 13 month (I think) anniversary. As an audience, we didn't get to experience any of this first year with them, but we are aware that something has changed. Their backyard, a barren ground full of cracks, is a reflection of Kay's soul. She has kept herself unattached from others; the coworkers at work who mock her, her family and, after this tree incident, her boyfriend. But this tree is an infestation on Kay's life.
The sapling is a foreshadowing of Kay's loss of control as her sister, Sweetie, enters her home. As soon as we meet Sweetie, she consumes the attention of all the characters. The life and roots of the tree represent the evils of attention-seeking Sweetie and of Kay's broken childhood coming back to haunt her.
Let's not give any more attention to Sweetie.
There is something truly unique and charismatic about this film. I didn't leave the film feeling as if the makers tried too hard; they didn't experiment for the sake of feeling like an art film. The cinematic choices made were deliberate and effective. They moved the story forward in ways that a simple plot unfolding could not have. The broken pavement, assumingly from roots beneath, the trees, the escape from civilization. It all worked.
More at aMovieaCountryaJourney.com.