Sundance Review: A Ghost Story

Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara play a young couple whose love story seemingly ends abruptly when he dies in A Ghost Story. Affleck's character, who is simply listed as C in the credits, discovers his existence still continues after death, but unfortunately, it consists of witnessing life silently under a sheet. Restricted to the confines of his house, he's forced to watch his former lover grieve extensively. If there's one thing to know about this movie upfront, it's that all scenes (and shots really) are incredibly drawn out and the film really revels in its simplicity and taking its time. In an early scene in the film, we witness the couple cuddling and it seems so earnest and sincere, and the length of it makes the audience feel uncomfortable--like we're intruding on their intimacy. It's the type of film that asks a lot of its audience because most of the scenes give you plenty of time to think. Also, when discussing Affleck's performance, it's hard to know what to say where his face isn't visible for 90% of the movie. Nor does he talk either. The film is practically a silent film as there is maybe only 10 minutes of dialogue total all throughout.

A Ghost Story is absolutely not a film for everyone. In fact, I'd definitely say that there is a very small audience for this film. It definitely knows it's an artsy movie and embraces that to a degree that is definitely alienating to a mainstream audience. But Ghost Story definitely doesn't care. However, even indie-loving audiences might find the constant long drawn out scenes to be pretty tedious to sit through. I can certainly understand audiences finding A Ghost Story to be a frustrating film experience, but at the same time, I can't help but admire its boldness and uniqueness. When it comes down to it, even if it wasn't the easiest film to sit through, its true originality is much preferred to some of the more uninspired offerings from Hollywood as of late. RATING: 8.5/10