WATCH THE TRAILER HERE
First, the Recap:
Separation from self. Estrangement from reality. A breaking of mind and soul. When a spectral-like awareness of pain and diminution comes to us, how is it that our very being seeks to define and sort out the myriad of emotions, sensations, that accompany it? How do we handle the diminished state we might find ourselves in? One young woman (Brittany Renee Smith) encounters such a perplexity as she makes attempts to ascertain the enigma that is an unexplained disappearance of someone close to her and the void that has now opened in the wake of it.
Even as elusive sleep waxes then wanes, an unsettled, apprehension-filled contemplation begins to take over every fiber of her thoughts and actions, existing in both lucid and hazy actualities. Trying to entreat the presence of the one she lost, whom she still feels is there with her, despite the obvious absence. There is both a comfort and a torment to be found in choosing to allow the cascade of longings and regrets to wash over her troubled mind, even as she pleads for the aid of the person she treasured now gone. Soon, it becomes evident that perhaps the best overall choice to make is absolute surrender.
Next, my Mind:
It’s a realm of surrealism and metaphysical introspection tempered with deeply-rooted spiritual implications and a supernaturally-infused undertone when viewing writer/director/co-producer/cinematographer/editor Steven Adam Renkovish’s 10-minute foray into the often complex and constantly fluctuating realities of loss and how we cope with it. Made even more potent by events in Renkovish’s own life that make this endeavor profoundly personal, it is one of the most eerie yet impactful and uniquely original deliveries of an oft explored theme this reviewer has seen. With the utilization of intentionally mixed grainy and highly defined cinematography, a strongly performed execution via voiceover narration and direct-to-the-audience sequences, uncomplicated but effective visuals, and the truly ethereal music score, it’s a journey into a moody dream world and the now with a fantastically orchestrated finale.
Just as she provided in Renkovish’s equally affecting “A Beautiful Silence“, Smith again brings such a grounded, nuanced, haunting, and emotive performance as the young woman here who’s wrestling against all the multi-faceted ramifications, both physically and internally, found in confronting and coming to grips with a burdensome deprivation. How it taunts her day and night, causing restlessness in heart and soul, anxiety and doubt, and other emotional upheaval is very much harrowing in its own right, yet at the same time, there are then moments of exceeding calmness when she feels she might have finally reached a point of acceptance, ready to move on. Smith deftly navigates all of this with incredibly believable poise, which only makes the overall tale that much more engaging and, in some ways, strangely disquieting, especially at the culmination of events.
In total, “Fugue”, which is titled for the exact, defined state of being the film portrays, carries itself with depth and resonant power which, honestly, will potentially be interpreted/applied differently by everyone who watches it. That, though, is the beauty of the film, as it represents only a particular, but stirring, vision of how loss is handled, and how letting go is still one of the hardest things to do.
As always, this is all for your consideration and comment. Until next time, thank you for reading!
The trailer looks awesome. Can’t wait!!