MIT has accepted the application of a brilliant, ambitious young woman named Rhoda. To celebrate, she gets drunk with her friends. As Rhoda is driving home alone, she hears on the radio that a new planet has appeared close enough to Earth to be visible to the naked eye. Curious, she looks up and sees a pale blue dot near the North Star.
While Rhoda eyes are skyward, she hits the vehicle John is driving, killing his wife and child and putting him in a coma. What if Rhoda had stayed in instead of going out? What if a friend had offered to drive her home? What if she’d tuned in to a different radio station? These questions are irrelevant; in the blink of an eye, John loses his family, and Rhoda’s path through life is irreversibly altered.
This is the scenario writer and director Mike Cahill establishes at the start of “Another Earth,” a thought-provoking new science fiction drama. It’s his first film, and I hope it’s not his last. One week after seeing the movie, I’m still thinking about its implications.
Have you ever considered what your life would be like if you’d made different choices, even with relation to small things? Would you be married to your spouse if you’d gone to a cheaper restaurant? Would your son or daughter exist if you’d stayed late at work? The only reason I’m writing this review is because about 49 years ago, my dad dove into a crowded pool the moment my mom was swimming by and landed on top of her. If my dad had jumped in a few seconds earlier or later, they might not have ever met, and I might not be here.
Things don’t go well for Rhoda and John. She goes to jail, and when the authorities grant her parole four years later, she gets a job as a janitor. John comes out of his coma, but is emotionally devastated, and begins to drink himself to death. Meanwhile, the pale blue dot gets bigger and bigger, and eventually, it becomes clear it’s a copy of Earth.
Riddled with guilt, Rhoda finds out where John is living and goes to apologize. When she sees him, she loses her nerve and says she’s there to offer him a free trial of a cleaning service. He lets her into his house and, in time, his life. As his outlook improves, her remorse grows deeper.
Then Rhoda learns about a lottery in which one person will win a trip to Earth 2.
I loved where “Another Earth” went from that point, right down to its last shot, which I haven’t been able to get out of my mind. Like a song that gets stuck in your head, the last minute of the movie is running in a perpetual loop in my brain. Each time I “see” the scene, I think about the daunting power of a simple question: What if? I also contemplate the tragedy of missing one’s destiny, and the impact we have on the lives of other people.
The interesting thing about my reaction to “Another Earth” is that early on, I thought choosing to review it had been a mistake, and I almost walked out. Although the shots of Earth 2 are striking, the movie looks cheap, as though Cahill filmed it with an inexpensive digital camera.
Also, in the beginning, he shoots too closely to his characters, which crowds everything else off the frame. And I didn’t like his decision to film “Another Earth” using the hand-held method; I think the material calls for a more classical approach. But the story, its characters, the questions Cahill raises, and the ending won me over in a big way. “Another Earth” has shoddy technical merits - you can see the shadow of the camera pass in front of Rhoda’s face in one scene – but it tells a compelling story, and its actors deliver good performances. “Another Earth” will play better in homes than it does in a theater, so if contemplative sci-fi is your thing, don’t miss it.
Rated PG-13 for disturbing images, some sexuality, nudity, and brief drug use. Three-and-a-half stars out of four.