The story of Corrine Walker (played by first-time director Vera Farmiga in adulthood), a woman who comes to her faith as a teenager, revels in it as a wife and mother and begins to question facets of it as her marriage to husband Ethan (Joshua Leonard) begins to come apart at the seams.

CRITIQUE

Here’s what I wrote about this film back in September of 2011:

“I’m not sure why it has taken me so much time to figure out how to write a review for Higher Ground. Actress Vera Farmiga’s directorial debut isn’t exactly complex, the melodrama of a thirty-something woman, Corinne, questioning her faith while living within a highly spiritual tight knit Christian community not exactly complex. Yet there is something about the film, something about the way it is constructed, about what it is saying, that has struck some sort of interior chord with me, and as such I’ve been having plenty of trouble compiling my thoughts into one.

Why? I think serious films about faith, ones that don’t try and push some sort of dogmatic point of view, don’t try to drown you in saccharine, refrain from pushing their ideas straight down your throat, resonate with me in some sort of strong way for some reason. Wings of Desire, The Seventh Seal, Léon Morin, Priest, these pictures along with so many others have given me so much food for thought I revel in the pondering of their intricacies, mulling my own theological feelings alongside the messages and ideas their respective filmmakers are doing their best to present.

Higher Ground isn’t up to that level, I’m not saying that, but Farmiga does understand that if you want people to seriously reflect and ask questions about their faith than you can’t go talking in absolutes. Everything here is a rhapsodic shade of gray, the filmmaker presenting her ideas and her concepts while leaving it up to the viewer to figure out for themselves what to make of them. This is cinematic fodder that is good for the soul, pun intended, and no matter what one’s religious longings or inclinations might be there is plenty presented here that’s undeniably universal in both practice and intent.

Based on the memoir This Dark World by Carolyn S. Briggs (who also co-wrote the screenplay), the film follows Corrine from adolescence (McKenzie Turner), to her teenage years (Taissa Farmiga), to adulthood (Vera Farmiga) as she grows into her religious fervor through circumstance and misfortune only to see it begin to unravel as her marriage dissolves and her friendships are damaged by illness and tragedy. It is a rollercoaster ride of emotional discourse, an intimate lecture on finding what is special within the human body itself, and discovering the resolve within to make the right choices even in the face of indecision and heartbreak.

Much of it is beautifully realized, the film split into distinctive chapters culminating in a final piece of spiritual awakening that is as empowering as it is life-affirming. Farmiga does a grand job of allowing God to exist but at the same time embracing the idea that Free Will is not something to be left in the hands of a collective of others so consumed by their devotion they forget to enjoy the wonders of the world, including their own families, which surround them.

Things can get a little slow at times, and certain subplots, especially involving Corrine’s free-spirited sister Wendy (Nina Arianda), are introduced only to be left sitting there nebulously unresolved. While many of the pieces fit together quite nicely, others are choppily handled to the point they don’t pack the intended punch, certain portions in the middle just mulling around in circles watching them trace back and forth round and round again started to make me dizzy.

Yet Farmiga gets so much right, keeps her focus so laser-focused on where it needs to be, Corrine’s journey couldn’t help but hit home. Mixing humor with pathos, comedy with drama, warmth with despair, as a filmmaker the actress shows a masterful amount of promise that’s beyond undeniable. Better, she builds the film beautifully, bringing things to a sensational, emotionally poignant coda that had me absolutely entranced, making Higher Ground a saga of faith, forgiveness and fortitude worthy of its fair share of hosannas.”

Higher Ground is beautifully realized and holds up incredibly well the second time around. If anything, I think I was even more impressed watching it again at home than I was initially when I saw it in the theatre. Farmiga proves herself to be a directorial talent to keep an eye on, and here’s hoping her next project behind the camera happens sooner rather than later.

THE VIDEO

Higher Ground is presented on a dual-layer 50GB Blu-rays MPEG-4 AVC Video with 1080p 1.85:1 transfer.

THE AUDIO

The Blu-ray features an English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 audio track and includes optional English SDH and French subtitles.

THE EXTRAS

Extras here include:

·         Audio Commentary with actor/director Vera Farmiga, actor Joshua Leonard and producer Renn Hawkey – A strong commentary track mostly dominated by Farmiga but one where the latter two do get to put in a few nice words, mostly during the climactic act.

·         The Substance of Things Hoped For: Making Higher Ground (18:52) – Better than average behind-the-scenes featurette covering most of the notable aspects of the film’s production. Once again, and probably for the best, Farmiga dominates.

·         Production Diary (2:36) – Essentially the evolution of a scene more than an actual diary of the film’s production; still interesting nonetheless.

·         Outtakes (0:44) – Two quick snippets from a couple of scenes, neither of which are particularly interesting.

·         Deleted Scenes (6:54) – Six of them, all far stronger than usual and each interesting in and of themselves. Personally, though, I think Farmiga made the right decision in leaving all six on the cutting room floor.

·         Extended & Alternate Scenes (5:31) – Two of them, both of which are quite good and I think a decent argument could be made they maybe should have made it into the finished film in these incarnations.

·         Original Theatrical Trailer (2:05)

The set includes a handful of trailers for other Sony releases and comes BD-Live Enabled.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Higher Ground is a strong, emotionally stirring effort and proves to be an wonderful debut for actress Vera Farmiga behind the camera. Those expecting some faith-based mediocrity that will pander to their personal belief systems better look elsewhere, while everyone else will likely be blown away by the dramatic power of the film and the religious grey areas it so deftly mines.