Grade: C
Never has a movie experience shook me more than David Lowery’s ‘A Ghost Story’. After this existentialist tragedy of a film, I walked out speechless, even disturbed on an emotional level. I still have questions. “What has this road led up to?” “What is the point of its existence?” “Why did I witness Rooney Mara eat a pie for 10 minutes?”. What Lowery does with ‘A Ghost Story’ is an example of great, yet thought-provoking film-making. The film is supposed to be a journey on the meaning of life through the point of view of a ghost. It is a tedious experience that could turn some audiences away, while leaving others experiencing something unconventional.
What looks to be a cheesy set-up (The ghost is nothing but a sheet with holes for eyes.) becomes a range of emotions. ‘A Ghost Story’ left me frustrated, amazed, even baffled. The first act starts off slow; introducing the married couple, C (Casey Affleck) and M (Mara) and taking its time to bring us a “romantic” scene involving the two in bed and showing C die in a car crash while coming back to life as said ghost; Act 2 is more or less a brilliant, and emotional twist on the haunted house genre; while I cannot describe Act 3, otherwise I would be giving too much away. This is a simple movie with a structure that seems off. I never expected ‘A Ghost Story’ to be the way that it did, and neither will you.
‘A Ghost Story’ is not for those looking for another entertaining popcorn movie, audiences who want art and meaning will see something beautiful in here. This movie has a lot of cosmic imagery, and is even filmed in the 1.33: 1 aspect ratio. As for ‘A Ghost Story’ itself, it was definitely something to witness.
Jon Spencer Reviews 