This movie is remarkable. Iâd like to warn that it was also one of the most depressing films Iâve ever seen⌠but oh so good, I promise you that. âWhere Is Kyraâ was very well done and the bleak, cloudy atmosphere created was so alluring that I couldnât look away. Iâd like to say it was an exceptional film.
Itâs macabre and thought-provoking, sincere and honest in its description of what someone will do and who theyâll become when faced with severe adversity. I would use the word exceptional but for one choice director Andrew Dosunmu made that had me cringing when this action occurred in his film. Yes, cringe, and not in a good way. An absolutely terrible noise would accompany scenes where Kyra (Pfeiffer) was impersonating her dead mother.
Iâm quite sure it was done to keep the audience on the edge so there was cause for it but it was so absolutely annoying and incredibly irritating that, for me, it not only dropped the grade down a touch but had to be mentioned to you. The audience is already mesmerized and get the point, Dosunmu. You donât need to use sound to attack those who might have missed it. Trust me⌠no one missed it. The film is good without its use to influence us.
The lighting was dark and set the tone beautifully, but I will add this, the film is a bit too slow early on for the average moviegoer, however, I implore you to keep watching. That alone should never be a reason to avoid watching a film. Itâs okay to allow a director to set the stage for you. Iâll try and do the same here.
The aforementioned Kyra, who Michelle Pfeiffer nailed superbly, is a divorced woman well past her prime. Sheâs living in Brooklyn and wants independence but with limited skills for todayâs needs, she is having trouble finding a job that will keep her afloat. She moves into her elderly mother, Ruthâs (Shepherd), apartment and helps take care of her. These scenes, one of them with a very brave and very nude Suzanne Shepherd, are tremendous and the connection they have is evident as Kyra helps Ruth in and out of her bath, keeps her company⌠expresses to her how much sheâs loved. Suddenly and unexpectedly, Ruth dies. Kyra is alone and for the first time feels abandoned. She looks around her motherâs home where her mother no longer resides and breaks down. Not only has Ruth left her but the financial support she was able to get is gone, too. What to do?
She meets up with one of Ruthâs neighbors, Doug (Sutherland), who also happens to be a caretaker at a nursing home. Heâs had a checkered past but has found helping people to be cathartic and rewarding. He genuinely cared for Ruth and decides to do what he can to help her daughter. Theyâre physically attracted to one another, as well, so they begin to have a much deeper relationship thatâs mutually beneficial. She opens herself up to Doug but when she gets so desperate for money as to do the unthinkable, sheâs afraid of losing him so she keeps it a secret. Sheâs aware of the fact that what sheâs doing can get her into bigger trouble but sheâs not finding a job and doesnât want to risk the relationship. She refuses to ask too much of Doug as sheâs prideful to a degree so she tries her best to make it on her own, however, bills are stacking up and itâs time to act to remedy the situation. The rest of the movie is truly captivating and, largely, grueling but you will not get up until the credits roll. Not for anything. Phenomenal.
See this movie. Amongst a world of remakes and reimaginingâs itâs quite unique and youâll do a lot of thinking long after the film is over.
Playing exclusively now at Harkins Camelview at Fashion Square. Donât miss it!