{2jtab: Movie Review}
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Writer/director Shane Carruth is one bold son of a bitch. Upstream Color is proof of that. He is also the thinking man’s filmmaker and delivers, four years after Primer - his stunning debut - a follow-up that is equally disturbing. His visuals are poem-like. His narratives are sparse and trippy. As a result, his films are dense and atmospheric and nowhere near being appropriate for the standard audience of a summer blockbuster. Art house satisfaction is guaranteed. Can someone please give him more work then?
Upstream Color stars out simple enough. With a quiet simmer, the film opens with an interesting set of mimicking events before it settles on a young woman. Kris (Amy Seimetz) is attacked by a shadowy thief (who opens the movie) and forced to swallow a couple of mysterious worms. She loses her will to think freely, turning her into a child-like puppet as her attacker persuades her to sell everything she owns and transfer it over to him.
The thief escapes but the worms remain.
In a dream-like trance, she is summoned by a peculiar man who transfers the worms from inside her into the pig on the operation table next to her. Her life is destroyed and while she struggles to put things back together, a young man named Jeff (Carruth) enters into her life as a love interest. Turns out, he’s been (one gathers) through the same nightmare and, as the lives of the pigs on the stranger’s farm bleed into their own, the two start sharing the same memories, struggling to make sense of their connective tissue.
Yes, this is all a well-executed science experiment. The film also gives science fiction thrillers a progressive name. Carruth never gives us the answers to the clear up whatever confusion we may or may not have. That’s not his job, mind you. There are clues along the way but the puzzle is up to you to solve. Upstream Color is intense in a very unsettling way. Carruth is bordering on pretention with much of the film but he never crosses the line. This is existentialism material through and through.
With Henry David Thoreau’s Walden in hand, the connection between animal and human is explored and twisted. Note Kris and Jeff’s reaction to the piglets of the worm-ridden pig being captured, thrown in a sack, and tossed off a bridge. Even though they are many, many miles away in office buildings nonetheless the couple behaves – without knowing why – as if their own family has been attacked. Bizarre and twisted, the film asks brave new questions of audiences familiar with transcendentalism and science fiction.
Bizarre, bold and certainly audacious, Upstream Color toys around with free will but surrenders itself to fate and it is our job to wonder all the reasons why.
{2jtab: Film Details}
MPAA Rating: This title has not been rated by the MPAA.
Runtime: 96 mins.
Director: Shane Carruth
Writer: Shane Carruth
Cast: Amy Seimetz; Shane Carruth; Andres Sensinig; Thiago Martins
Genre: Sci-fi | Drama
Tagline: Upstream Color
Memorable Movie Quote: "I have to apologize. I was born with a disfigurement where my head is made of the same material as the sun."
Distributor: erbp
Official Website: http://erbpfilm.com/film/upstreamcolor
Release Date: January 21, 2013 (Sundance Film Festival)
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: May 7, 2013
Synopsis: A man and woman are drawn together, entangled in the life cycle of an ageless organism. Identity becomes an illusion as they struggle to assemble the loose fragments of wrecked lives.
{2jtab: Blu-ray Review}
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Blu-ray Details:
Available on Blu-ray - May 7, 2013
Screen Formats: 2.40:1
Subtitles: English
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1; English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
Discs: 25GB Blu-ray Disc; Two-disc set (1 BD, 1 DVD); DVD copy
Upstream Color, presented here in a solid 1080p/MPEG-4 AVC transfer, is a fabulous testament to the powers of hypnotic science fiction. The film's image is sometimes grainy, the focus often deliberately shallow, but these visual elements ground the more surreal concepts in a recognizable reality. This transfer, most importantly, doesn't polish the image. The lo-fi beauty of filmmaker Shane Carruth's method remains. Colors, however, are striking. Daytime scenes are beautifully rendered. The macro photography – there are a lot of close-ups – are really beautiful and incredibly detailed. The sound mix, presented in a DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundtrack, is rich and, while the dialogue is sparse and a little low, Carruth's score makes up for its lack of depth.
Supplements:
Commentary:
- None. Obviously, Carruth wants to keep you guessing.
Special Features:
Carruth is also very brave. He is releasing this Blu-ray independently. It comes in a Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack. The discs are housed in a nice tri-fold but, outside of some trailers, there’s no bonus material. It doesn’t matter. Carruth remains mysterious with this release. The result? This is a must own.
{2jtab: Trailer}
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