
The filmed image is liberated from the shackles of representation of an external reality, becoming autonomous and spatial; the sound drifts and is regenerated by its asyncronous but nevertheless intimate relation to the image. Here, the sound is not reduced to the secondary role of accompanying the image. It constitutes the sensory experience just as much as does the image. Fast motion, slow motion, superimposition, reflection, colorization, filtering and synthetic composition: a combination of effects that produces a long audiovisual perspective within just one sequence.
A story about precarious tricks and unstoppable discipline to inspire young viewers. They'll learn that like any dream, achieving Cloud 9 is possible.
From its visually stunning opening credits, which show women dancing through a forest to musical rhythms that sound almost primal, to its quiet, heartbreaking final frame, Mona Fastvold’s historical rendering of the Shaker religious movement is an experience that will stay with me for a long time.
The fun tricks used in the production design and lighting read extremely well on-screen but hardly fulfill their purpose of trying to inject glamour into a lack-luster story with nothing to say.
A direct fall into the white savior narrative
This captivating film can only be truly appreciated by seeing it firsthand. There are not enough words to describe the terrible beauty one experiences while watching it.