Before Claudia Llosa’s illusory drama Aloft has even reached the five minute mark, we’ve seen Jennifer Connelly put her entire forearm into the anus of a pig, and watched on as her character Nana partakes in rather intense, aggressive sex in what appears to be the back of a barn. The worst thing about this nonsensical and contrived piece of cinema, is that it somehow manages to go downhill from thereon.
Nana is a single mother of two young boys, one of which, Gully, is suffering from a potentially terminal illness. In a hopeful, desperate bid to cure her child, Nana takes her son to a spiritual ceremony in the middle of the woods, where a faith healer operates within a sheltered sculpture made up solely of sticks. However when Nana’s other child, Ivan, accidentally lets his pet falcon loose – it flies into the confinement, only to then destroy it when attempting to break free. Miraculously, as Nana tries to help she discovers that she herself is the bearer of magical healing powers, though before she has time to properly comprehend the implications. a tragic accident tears her family apart. We then progress into the future, where Ivan (Cillian Murphy) is approached by documentary maker Jannia (Mélanie Laurent) to recount his baffling childhood memories, and get to the bottom of his strange past by tracking down a now elderly Nana.
Aloft is a film that attempts to remain true to its naturalistic approach, and yet implement a spiritual, enchanting atmosphere – yet this simply doesn’t have the charm or ingenuity in the same way corresponding films such as Beasts of the Southern Wild do, for instance, and this struggles to capture either notion, falling carelessly in between. The entire picture is evidently searching for a deeper meaning within the audience, as a piece evidently designed to make us think, and to read between the lines – in an Upstream Colour kind of way, yet it fails miserably in such a department, and any such intellectualism instead appears preposterous and derisory. Films such as this can work if profound and provocative, yet this is neither.
Most of its shortcomings derive from the cliches that drag this production down. There are certain moments where you pray that Llosa won’t lead you down the predictable route, and yet every time you’re left wanting and frustrated. For example, there are two characters who take part in one of the most unfathomable romantic narratives you’ll see in a good long while, as one that bears no palpable chemistry or reasoning behind it whatsoever, aside from the fact one person is a man, and one is a woman, naturally deeming it an inevitability.
The only positive of note is the cinematography, as a film that’s quite pleasing on the eye as a gratifying visual experience, with the occasional beautiful shot. However it’s not enough to cause a noetic response, despite the fact the themes and content would suggest that’s the filmmaker’s desire. Aloft stirs nothing within you, not emotionally, not provocatively. Pivotal scenes designed to move and upset you do nothing at all. To be honest, the best thing about this picture is the falcon. Not just because there’s a certain elegance about the creature when it soars through the sky, but because it don’t have any dialogue. Which, in this instance, is seriously favourable.
[Rating:1/5]
