Birth (R, 2004)

Birth is one of those films that is very easy to bash if you don't understand what the story is really about. I don't know what goes into marketing a film but I don't see which other direction could have been taken. It was marketed as some supernatural-type of story when it really is so much more than that. I think I get what it is that this film addresses. It's a story about a woman who lost her husband prematurely. It takes a unique look at how this woman grieves. It seems that losing her husband must have left her with some kind of post-traumatic stress. When unexpected things happen people deal in their own way. Ten years pass and this boy comes along and tells her he's her [dead] husband. She seems never to have really gotten over it and in her grief and desperation is willing to believe anything other than he is gone for good. I can see where this film would make some people uncomfortable. There are these endless takes which begs to question if the director is sending us subliminal messages or trying to hypnotize us. It can be unsettling because it forces you to be still and just watch. There is one sex scene that does seem gratuitous but its over fairly quickly. The scenes in question with the boy seem to be blown a little out of proportion. When the boy disrobes and enters the tub you never see him naked (the camera just makes it look that way). In the other scene when he moves in to kiss her she is still like a mannequin. By the angle it was shot I'm not even so sure he kissed her on the lips. I do have to sing Nicole Kidman's praises, she was outstanding...brilliant!!! She was so much better in this than the role which won her an Oscar (the hours). She definitely deserves and Oscar nod. The emotional range is something, you just feel for her. I also have to say, I don't particularly like Anne Heche. However, she was only in the movie for a few scenes, yet she was so impactful. With all that I just need to say that Birth is definitely a film worth watching with an open mind...its worth it.