Another Earth

(5 out of 5)

Another Earth

I have always believed that the best movies are ones you discover when you weren’t looking for them. Another Earth, the movie, was one of those surprisingly quirky, thoughtful, and heart moving tales of people finding themselves in difficult situations. It is packed mildly in science fiction genre packaging – but it is a tale of young idealistic hope and promise that is immediately slapped down with the existential reality of life and tragedy. All of that happens within the first 10 minutes – and the rest of the movie is a tale of redemption, self -discovery, forgiveness, reconciliation, hope, starting over and sacrificial living.

It is artfully done - slower and thoughtful, philisophical.  If you want action - this is not the movie for you.  If you want a kind hearted movie that is also realistically painful and full of redemption and hope - then you will like this movie.

There is no nudity or foul language but some suggestively intimate moments - and an attempted suicide.

If you don’t want any more spoilers stop reading now.

The story begins with a radio DJ announcing there is an “earth-like,” planet that has just become visible in the night sky as a small blue light. Over the next four years the planet gets closer and closer to our earth – and it is discovered that it is exactly like our earth. It has the same landmasses, the same buildings and ultimately the same people – a parallel earth. Throughout the movie people discuss what it might be like to encounter your “other you.” Questions are posed: What would we ask ourselves? Would our lives be different there based on the choices we made?

In this story, when the earth first appears a newly graduated high school student is driving drunk and kills a man’s whole family. She goes to jail for four years and gets out and goes to the house of the man whose family she killed. She goes to apologize but is too afraid to do it – so she instead claims to be a maid and offers services. Soon, she is caring for him and falling in love with him.

There is a side character who is also fighting demons of his own – and the solution to all of them is wrapped up in “forgiveness.” Specifically, this is a tale of learning to forgive yourself for not being “perfect.”