Light from Light

By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 5 cats
Director: Paul Harrill
Starring: Atheena Firzzell | Christopher Ward | David Cale | Jim Gaffigan | Josh Wiggins | Marin Ireland | Michael Hampton | Rhoda Griffis

Country: united_states

Year: 2020

Running time: 82

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt9358160/reference

Michael says: “I just finished watching a film that I so thoroughly enjoyed, and that moved me to tears at the end, and when thinking back, I’m not sure why. The film has a great premise that could promise chilling drama, but never does. We first see Sheila being interviewed on a local radio show about her work as a paranormal researcher. Due to some sensitivities to spirits that she exhibited as a child, she eventually began working for a group that would research potential hauntings. A priest who has been counseling one of his parishioners reaches out to Sheila in the hopes that she might be able to help. You see, Richard’s wife died just under a year ago, when two person plane she was traveling in crashed in the Smokey Mountains. Now he thinks he might be feeling her presence in the house they shared: her hand on his shoulder, his keys being moved, the flickering of some lights. Sheila agrees to try to help, and with great care and professionalism, goes about interviewing Richard about his wife, setting up cameras and recorders and asking any presences that may be in the house to communicate with her.

“Sheila also has a high-school aged son named Owen, how is growing closer to his friend Lucy. When he declines to invite her to the school dance, he explains that there’s no point. She will be going off to college, and they will probably break up at some point, so why not spare themselves the pain and not get involved? It’s a rationale that a protective mother like Sheila finds logical, but as we all know, some feelings you just have to experience in order to truly live. As Owen and Lucy help Sheila with her investigation, they continue to grow closer and Owen’s best-laid plans grow more complicated.

“I can’t speak strongly enough about the writing and direction by second time helmer Paul Harrill (SOMETHING, ANYTHING). His work is so gentle, so grounded, so resonant, that simple moments become beautiful. He knows when to linger on his actors faces to explore difficult emotions that they are unable to express verbally, and wow, has he assembled a batch of actors that do that really wll. Marin Ireland blew me away as Sheila. There are some moments where she just give a look that I sat there in awe of what she was expressing. Ireland has appeared in many films, including a couple I have seen (THE MISEDUCATION OF CAMERON POST; THE FAMILY FANG) but I don’t recall her in those. I do remember her quite well in season 2 of The Umbrella Academy as a Texas housewife who becomes involved with Elliot Page’s Vanya, and she was good, but this role was a revelation for me. I will definitely be watching out for her again. Jim Gaffigan, who plays Richard, has apparently also appeared in a bunch of films, many of them comedies, and from his physicality alone, I can see how he might do well in a comedy, but Richard’s gentleness, hesitance, confusion and struggle with grief and anger over his wife’s death was so beautifully played, and underplayed, that he was able to express so much with so little. Josh Wiggins was also terrific as Owen, and I was surprised to see that he starred in a gay-themed movie I saw last year called GIANT LITTLE ONES. It was one of the few American, indie, gay-themed films that I actually rather enjoyed, and he brought a lot to his performance in that film as well.

“The cinematography by Greta Zozula (who also did THE HALF OF IT this year) was remarkable as well. From setting the tone with the gorgeous shots of the mist on the Smokey Mountains, to the great angles used to shoot Sheila as she moves through Richard’s house trying to sense any paranormal phenomenon. When Sheila and Richard hike to the crash site where his wife died, the greens and grays that suffuse their travel are thick and dense, like the emotions and expectations racing across the actor’s faces.

“This is a film about being haunted, and about desire… the desire for an explanation, to protect, to care, to find a purpose. I feel I could go on and on, gushing about so many little moments, which is why I wanted to write this review immediately, before these small moments slipped away, leaving me with a vague notion of the beauty of this film. Honestly, I was stunned in the final scene, when the emotion welled up in me for little tangible reason other than how beautiful it all seemed, and how powerful. This film is only 82 minutes long, and I can’t guarantee you won’t find it dull, but I highly, highly recommend you give it a shot on Prime. 5 cats“