In Review: Birth

Kim and I went to see Birth this last weekend. We were both pretty happy to see it; it was one of those movies we'd really wanted to see but kind of forgot about it in the hubbub of the big holiday movies.

The movie was a bit strange. It was strange in the same way Eyes Wide Shut was strange... a simple repeating tune throughout, a lot of dimly lit interiors, long pauses, extended closeups on actors' faces that really put you in their head, odd shots that framed the characters in a way that made you want to look around the corner of the screen, uncomfortable interactions between the characters, explanationless details.... Things like that.

I didn't really care for Eyes Wide Shut all that much, but I really like Birth. I think that was for two main reasons: Firstly, I really like Nicole Kidman. I know she was in Eyes Wide Shut as well, but not as a main or sympathetic character. Not like in Birth, anyway.

But more significantly, the story followed very closely along the pattern laid out in Dr. Ian Stevenson's Where Biology and Reincarnation Intersect. Well, except for the drama at the end. I don't know if the similarities were due to research on the part of screenwriter or me drawing unwarranted connections, but it made the movie very compelling for me. I don't want to ruin the end for people that haven't seen th movie yet, but once you do see it, let me know, since I'd love to talk about it.