Another Earth: A Masterful Indie
Three years ago when I was looking through my movie archive, I found Another Earth.
I remember back then I wasn’t really in the mood for watching a film but I decided to watch a few minutes. I had no idea this incredible independent film is going to be one of my all-time favorite films.
I saw this image when I was a kid. The photograph of Jupiter taken by NASA’s Voyager. Beautiful. But nothing special until shown in rapid succession. Suddenly Jupiter was alive. Breathing. I was hypnotized.
-Rhoda
After this quote about a Jupiter’s photo, Another Earth starts with a party scene which leads to the defining scene where Rhoda (Brit Marling) is driving back home. She’s drunk and is listening to a news report about the “Earth 2.0” which has been discovered recently and it’s actually visible from earth right now. Rhoda looks out of the window and finds the another earth. At this moment she hits another car and her life will never be the same again.
After I watched this stunning scene I remembered that I have heard about this film before. One of my friends, Pouria, suggested this film to me like two years before that when it was recently released. Anyway, this short opening scene made me watch the whole film. A good opening is essential and I know many American movies have strong ones but this one was kinda different for me. It doesn’t really have the good opening material but somehow it does! The car crash moment is strongly harsh and surprising. I think that was the powerful cliffhanger.
Mike Cahill who has written, directed, photographed, and edited the film has created a really unique universe with absolutely nothing. The film is shot by a Sony EX3 camera while they were shooting in the director’s hometown. It is a perfect example of a low-budget independent sci-fi film. The screenplay is written by Cahill and Marling who also provides excellent performance in the film.
If you enjoy independent films and like to watch talent and minimal film-making over million-dollar productions and haven’t seen Another Earth, you have to. I’m not gonna tell you any more about the story because I know you’re gonna have a great time experiencing it. I totally recommend everybody to watch this amazing movie.
