Another Earth – Movie Review

Another Earth‘ is the first directorial outing for cinematographer Mike Cahill. Centred around a shocking incident which coincides with the appearance of an alternate Earth, it explores the dashed hopes of a budding scientist, Rhoda (played by Brit Marling), the hopeless existence of the man who’s family she destroyed, composer John Burroughs (William Mapother) and their eventual (and rather inexplicable) coming together.

Another Earth is a desperately gloomy tale, and one I felt a little cheated by – while the acting is solid and the characters convincing, the science fiction label attached to the film is, until the final scene, to all intents and purposes a thin trapping to conceal what is essentially a tortured romance. Visually it does share a common feature with other recent low-budget sci-fi outings – the frequent use of grainy hand-held cameras. I understand their use in allowing the audience to get more up close and personal with the actors during very active scenes, but they’re not always appropriate. In this piece, which is essentially a series of long scenes set in and around one house, it doesn’t feel appropriate at all.

Slow to develop at times, this dark romance between two rather unlikeable characters won’t really stand repeated viewing. While not terrible, Another Earth is not a cult classic in the making either unfortunately… 3 out of 5.

About Pete Stean

Pete Stean is a London-based writer and photographer. He can also be found on Twitter and on Google Plus.

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