I wanted to like this movie more. It feels like a labor of love and surely took some extraordinary efforts to get made. It was however heartbreaking to see that it was very poorly shot. Montana's beauty suffers unartful framing and desaturated grading. The interiors evoke the look of overhead fluorescent lighting. I thought this look and feel was going to shift when the dog is introduced. IOW the stark horrible look of the beginning would set up a contrast with a more hopeful and loving lushness at some point. No. It stays terrible.
Directing yourself in a film is tough for anyone. It is two huge and important jobs at once. Michael Spears gives a very good performance. The use of singles hurts the integrity of the drama. It breaks the tension between the characters by putting them in separate shots. The editing is also an issue as the cuts come right before a line starts. Better would have been to keep the camera on whichever character had the most to react to or convey visually or use more 2-shots.
Passion for the subject and the story came through despite the shortcomings. I hope the team will try again.
Directing yourself in a film is tough for anyone. It is two huge and important jobs at once. Michael Spears gives a very good performance. The use of singles hurts the integrity of the drama. It breaks the tension between the characters by putting them in separate shots. The editing is also an issue as the cuts come right before a line starts. Better would have been to keep the camera on whichever character had the most to react to or convey visually or use more 2-shots.
Passion for the subject and the story came through despite the shortcomings. I hope the team will try again.