Refuge

I stumbled across this on Netflix and apparently this was perhaps a straight to DVD video, so I wasn't expecting much but it turned out to be a sweet, heartfelt drama. Amy is a young woman with a bright future and college scholarship but chooses to stay home to care for her younger siblings when their parents abandon them. The movie starts after she has been home for a while and is dealing with the frustrations of small town life with parental responsibilities of two teenagers. When a stranger, Sam, drifts into town with his own challenges and interacts with Amy, they each have to come to terms with what happiness means to them.

So here's your totally average guy looses his job, gets in his truck, drives off to life in a new town. Walks into a joint (sportin a 4-day stubble), and presto-pronto hooks up with a totally unattached-available (but GTBW everyone), lovely-as-ever 'Krysten Alyce Ritter'.. binged.it/1tSopmT .. She immediately takes him home, rips his clothes off and 'sleeps' with him. Then two days later, he asks to move in with her, and in an eye-blink she agrees... talk about finding 'refuge.' It's a romanticized, sweet story, with a very decent cast. A majority of viewers will be finding it unlikely to say many negative things.. although the story, without too much argument, would have to be considered quite a bit more than fairytale unbelievable.

Refuge is Jessica Goldberg's debut vehicle as a movie director. Since she also wrote the screenplay and a play from which it is derived, this is a signature work for her.

The story seems to develop unevenly, at least on first viewing. Again and again, Goldberg misses opportunities to spike up the emotional reactions of the audience. Where countless other romantic movies catch our attention by buffing the usual into the unusual, Refuge does not.

As a result, it may seem a bit flat to those accustomed to modern TV, cinema and advertising. We come to scenes where a character could demonstrate some great nobility, but a lesser act occurs. This may reduce the adrenaline/endorphin hit we might have received, but it illustrates Goldberg's key point: ordinary people can rise above circumstance and do extraordinary things. Viewers who will adjust themselves to this more natural rhythm may be reminded that no cape and spandex are required to elevate human experience.

Refuge is evocative of the better works of some foreign directors of years gone by. Eisenstein moved us with fixed-camera moving tableaux that revealed simple beauty. Goldberg accomplished the same thing with a dilapidated house, character development and storyline. Julie Delpy's rambling tours of Paris provided her lean framework for the rambling lives of her characters. Goldberg's house framed the simple, stark realities of the characters of Refuge.

Like the words to a great blues song, Refuge brings us down into the barren recesses of existence. The music of the blues gives us a way to rise above, and the storyline and details of Refuge do the same. In scene after scene, we find a neatness and pleasing balance to small items in the house that suggest a transcendence of life's challenges. A shot of a table and a few mismatched chairs encourage us to step into the scene and sit down, confident that we will find warmth and security there. It is not so much that the house itself is a refuge, but that the heart of Amy, the female lead, is creating one for us.

In a scene outside a Doctor's office, Sam, our cigarette-smoking leading man idly tries to repair a dented piece of siding. In another, he grabs up a couple of branches that have fallen in the yard. With these simple gestures, we see our tendency to improve what is around us. All four of the key characters are deeply flawed and irritating at times. Yet as the story progresses, we become attached to them. Anyone wishing to rediscover the power of the human spirit, particularly on its feminine side, would do well to seek out this movie.

Loved the leads and wanted to see how their two lonely characters turned out. Could have been grittier. Screenplay seemed underdone at times. Extra star for the laidback soundtrack from (I think) the Milk Carton Kids. (viewed 10/16)

I stumbled across this movie on Netflix, and I was not expecting much from this but this movie actually blew me away. It's been a very long time since a movie got to me emotionally like this one did. I have never written a review on here before but I wanted too with this one, as it doesn't seem to have much feedback.

Refuge is a Heartfelt Drama, you are introduced to this family after their parents have abandoned them. Amy is the older sister and takes the role of the mother, and looks after her younger siblings. Sam is also troubled passes through the town, meets Amy and decides to stay. He tries to help out Amy and does his best to be there for her and the two siblings.

The younger brother has brain damage and is really depressed. It follows him trying to talk to people as he has a hard time doing so. The younger sister suffers from abandonment issues, and is seeking for attention. Both siblings adore Amy and want her to be happy, there's a few scenes where you really see this.

The acting in this movie was brilliant, especially Krysten Ritter's performance, she did an amazing job in this role and I will never doubt her in a drama. You felt for her character the entire film, the emotion was written all over her face the entire time. The rest of the cast was also very good. I feel like I had to give a special shout out to Krysten though, she was very good.

What I liked most about this movie is it feels very realistic and I think that's what makes it most depressing. It doesn't necessary give you a happy ending, which is how life can be.

If you are into drama's definitely check this one out.