Another Earth [Blu-ray + DVD + Digital Copy]

This movie was interesting, however I was hoping to see some interaction between the occupants of both worlds, and also of what the twin Earth looked like.
Are they both identical in every aspect?
Where did the second Earth come from?
Are there loved ones alive on one Earth while not alive on the other?
What would you say to another you if you met them in person?
What would they say to you?
Such things would be fascinating to see.
I was dissapointed the writer or director didn't explore these possibilities.

For those of you expecting this to be a Science Fiction movie, it's not.
The story is mostly confined to the reference frame of our own Earth.
Very little is known or shown about the twin Earth. It's simply a backdrop to support the main storyline of two adults who's lives are centered around a car accident.

Richter

Watching Lars Von Trier's Melancholia, about an approaching planet led me to this movie made around the same time.

As Another Earth begins, we are introduced to a bright, attractive young girl with a brilliant future, with an interest in the Cosmos, and she has just got into MIT.

When another earth with the same continents and oceans appears in the sky, people get excited, some are nervous. As she drives along that night, a radio announcer talks excitedly about the new planet, while a father, pregnant mother, and five year old child sit talking in a parked car. Momentarily, she looks skyward. You can probably imagine what happens.

Now we have a woman whose life is but a walking shadow. After some time she returns to the world. But her star has somewhat diminished. Although she says little me may infer that she has unresolved grief and guilt which cripples her from moving forward in life. She takes a job that requires little human contact, as a cleaner.

Returning to the scene, she discovers the husband, and contrives to meet him and seek forgiveness.

Discoveries about the other earth may make you wonder if there are people like you on this other earth, mirrors to ourselves, mirroring our events or not. Such possibilities offer the hope of redemption, although others find it frightening.

As the husband continues to contend with his waterlogged grief, his withdrawal, and limitations of his previous musical abilities, we see no way for her to broach this subject. Meanwhile, a Branson like entrepeneur offers a select few a free trip to the other earth.

My favorite scene in the movie is when she tells the husband the story of the first cosmonaut, a healing metaphor, and so perhaps if she cannot reveal herself she may be able to heal him in other ways. I watched this scene over and over. We wonder how it will all turn out.

I found this movie to be very beautiful. It has won several awards, including two Sundance Awards, the Special Jury Prize, and an acting award for Brit Marling, a young actress who struggled to obtain acting jobs in Hollywood, and had the novel idea of writing a movie for herself with cowriter and director Michael Hall.

In doing so, they have crafted a wonderful movie. As an actress she delivers a very subtle and nuanced performance. In three scenes in a row near the begininning she says very little, but she conveys a tremendous amount without words, and she has a certain beauty, let's face it, that, if you're like me, grows on you as you watch the movie. Another earth looks like an expensive movie, yet was made on a shoestring, causing director and actress to be very resourceful. To obtain a shot of her walking out of a prison, she walked in pretending to be a yoga instructor, there to give a class to inmates. When she walked out he got the shot.

I was hugely impressed with this movie, the acting, writing, directing, the visual effects of the other planet. William Mapother, who you may remember as Ethan from Lost, or the villain from In the Bedroom plays the husband. Certainly, I liked this movie much better than Melancholia.

Now, I would watch any movie featuring Brit Marling or made by Michael Hall. I think you will love it.

I wonder if this was helpful to you.

I purchased 'Melancholia' by Lars Von Trier and 'Another Earth' the same weekend. I watched 'Melancholia' first. As much as I enjoy the surreality of Trier's films, it left me unfulfilled. This now had me somewhat apprehensive to watching 'Another Earth'. While, I agree with another posting below & would have enjoyed more interaction between the 2 earthlings/worlds - I suspect this is just a result of our inherent quest & curiosity on that subject/scenario. I waited a day or two and then watched 'Another Earth'. I was more than pleased. The main story line was captivating and the added sub plot of the parallel Earth 2 gave the main story an extra push and jolt throughout, leaving me on the proverbial edge of my seat. My mind raced with preoccupancy as to how the story would resolve. No mater what I envisioned, the end result was more than satisfying. In all, an exceptionally rewarding film to watch. Less sci-fi than suggested, with a strong morality & ethically driven story. Movies of this nature, strength and wonderment do not come along often from Hollywood. When they do emerge, they are well worth the money, time and contemplation afterwards.