Take Shelter (April, 22)

Take Shelter is an astonishing movie, of those that could only be a product of a small production. Indies movies have a way of getting closer to some aspects of life in a very special way. From the mind of Jeff Nichols, the same from the surprising Midnight Special, Take Shelter presents an important view of daily life through the extraordinary.

I was trying to figure out a way to write about it without giving out too much, because doubt is an essential feature here. We navigate through many theories, notions, without knowing exactly our location. 

Some days ago, a close friend told me how a guy, in her neighborhood, looked at her carrying her old dog (the most beautiful creature in the whole world, the lovely Leka) and said: "What a waste, someone treating an animal as a kid". She is a very no-nonsense person, and immediately inquired if he was talking about her. Because, she said, my dog is old, sick, and is not able to walk in some places, as this one. The thing is, even if she'd treated her pet as a kid, it was her problem.He was being so overbearing in his judgment, it is something we see frequently. What it had to do with him anyway? 

The impressive Michal Shannon

Why are you not married? (I've heard that a lot on the after falling down the stairs, because I'd have asked my husband help for changing a bulb). Why do you like to sleep so early? (Not for me, for sure). Why this, why that... So many questions about stuff that matters to one actually. And they fall from people's mouth like a stream coming from nowhere. Judgment comes also from the lack of a careful look to the other. We usually seek conclusion before observation. I've read once a Jungian rendering of Eros and Psyche myth in which the author said that Psyche put a light on the face of Aphrodite's son in order to know who he really was. At the same time she had a knife on her back, however she used the light first. Acording to the writer, she used knowledge before force. It is so beautiful, a lesson we should carry close to the heart every second of our lives. We have our opinion, of course, but judgment is a very different thing, a perverse way of treating others (and, sometimes, even ourselves). 

Take Shelter addresses this kind of careless way of living in a small community. However, being a non simplistic filmmaker, Nichols give us the wonderful other side, which is the extreme care and attentive love in a relationship that could be full of cliches. It is stunning, so amazing. Such a strong character, I was never expecting it. To show how much I know...

The ending is big, I'll just tell you that. What is this movie? A slap on the face of easy conclusion. I loved it, and for sure I'll reach other Nichol's features and his much needed careful look to our surroundings while dealing to what seems from another world. 

Take Shelter. Directed and written by Jeff Nichols. Cast: Michael Shannon,
Jessica Chastain, Tova Stewart. USA, 2011,Dolby Digital/SDDS, Color, 121 min.