Things Behind the Sun

...is something Allison Anders expresses in her films, and wow, filming in the house where she herself was raped as a child shows her engagement with the movie. It's her compassionate and tough look at how many lives rape irreversibly affects. Films about rape or child molestation aren't probably going to be box office smashes anytime soon, but don't deny yourself this beautiful film just because the subject material is uncomfortable. Great dialogue, strong acting (especially by Kim Dickens and Don Cheadle), and the usual great script and direction by Alison Andres. Listen to the DVD commentary afterwards for more on this amazing film and the artist behind its creation, Ms. Andres.

The good parts of this movie, apparently inspired by a true story, makes me wish it was better as a whole. Kim Dickens is great as a troubled singer still haunted by a gang rape as a teenager. Don Cheadle as her manager and ex-lover has stereotypical characteristics, but gives a very good performance (his final words and expression in the scene with the writer was classic). Eric Stolz is excellent as well. And, the scenes at the music magazine was interesting, if incomplete. The whole movie, however, also has an incomplete feeling to it. The passion and message is there, and the brutal honesty about rape and its effects on all involved valuable. Nonetheless, the movie drags too often and often feels incoherent. Also, the writer is a rather pathetic character, and I got tired of him mighty fast. A better script would have made this movie much better ... as is, it is a worthy misfire.

I was lucky enough to see this film at the Sundance film festival, where we gave Allison Anders a 5 minute standing ovation for what she's done with this film. The story is deceptively simple- a rock and roll chick who is pretty messed up for reasons that become clear when she hooks up with a young journalist- but it's the feelings that pierce and soar in this film. But it's not just a woman's story, the young man is also searching for (dare I say it) redemption. Filled with wonderful performances (why isn't Kim Dickens a star yet?) and even better cameos (Don Cheadle, Eric Stolz) this is a film that needs to be seen. One of the first, only, films that deals with sexual abuse and trauma and healing in a way that is both riveting and repulsive. And it has a great sound track! Go and see it!

A compelling film. This film really touched my heart. While the film is certainly far from perfect, I thought it dealt wonderfully with the subject matter and showed such a sensitivity towards not only victims of violence but also towards how scars incurred in childhood can mar us forever.

Gabriel Mann was awesome in this. He gave the role such a conscience and it was nice to see him used fully as an actor as opposed to his rather less than full role in 'High Art' (which I happen to love nonetheless). But whereas High Art was Radha Mitchell and Ally Sheedy's film, this film really, for me, belonged to Mann. Kim Dickens did a great job also, but Mann still takes top billing in my book. My hat off to Allison Anders - it's nice to know that there are filmmakers out there that are not so concerned with commercialism as they are with substance and exploration. The fact that it says that the film is semi-autobiographical just makes me applaud her more. If you're into character studies and the way the past effects ones life, this is a movie worth seeing.

It was such a painful movie, I don't know how to describe it. All I can say is that it was so well done that I was almost forced to watch it. I couldn't bring myself to change the channel. It was well written, well acted and well directed. Kim Dickens and Gabriel Mann did an astounding job portraying the victims. I could feel Sherri's pain like it was my own and I felt pain for Owen, as well. The only thing I felt could have been done differently is that Owen was just as much a victim as Sherri was. He was just a child at the time of the rape. How can he have been held responsible for something he didn't want any part of and was forced into by his sociopathic brother? He suffered for it, too. I understand why Sherri had trouble dealing with him up to a point but it seems that everyone involved forgot that he had been a defenseless child, too. I highly recommend this movie to anyone who's ever been a victim or knows a victim.