Ben River's THE SKY TREMBLES AND THE EARTH IS AFRAID AND THE TWO EYES ARE NOT BROTHERS is going to try the patience of a good number of people who wander into it. Nominally an adaption of a Paul Bowles novel the film is also several other things at the same time including a documentary on the making of the film. Its a strange cinematic hybrid that is very much the work of an artist (Actually the film originally screened in a London museum as part of an installation).
That doesn't mean its good or for most audiences.
A great looking film, the film remains largely obtuse and the sort of thing that long shots of nothing much in particular are tied to a sound track where no one says much of import. Twenty minutes in my eyes had glazed over and I was trying to fall asleep.
I really was bored by the film but I remained in the theater hoping that the film would some how pull it all together. It never did.
When the film ended I went digging for my press notes and it was then that I discovered that the director of the film also made one of my least favorite films A SPELL TO WARD OFF DARKNESS, which has nothing happen for 90 minutes as a man wanders around the countryside. Realizing the press notes for THE SKY TREMBLED... were probably like those of SPELL... I promptly deleted them because all of the clues about the film that should have been on screen were probably going to be in the notes which only the critics see. I want to see films as regular Joes do.
If you're a fan of the director by all means go see this. All others are advised to skip it.
This screens twice on October 4 for details and tickets go here
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