In someone else’s words, this movie is:
An Extraordinary Story of an Ordinary Life
For most of the film, I ask two questions:
- Is this story based on a real person?
- Where is this story going?
In reality, neither one matters.
The film is an Oscar nominee for many reasons.
- The music is just right
- The main actor says more by saying less
- In a world where we are used to fast-paced scenes, the director manages to make the silence of a narrative speak volumes
I can’t say I loved it. I can’t say I was captivated. But I was never bored. I was drawn in. I cared.
It’s a story of ups and downs. Happiness and sadness. Grief and love. Reality and hallucination. Acceptance, denial, confusion, and everything in between. It’s a story of life. Not a life I’d want to live, but a life I appreciate having witnessed through film.
If anything, I woke up thinking about the film, and that in itself says a lot.