To Dust

When the R rating for this film declares disturbing images they're not kidding. The movie is a dark, absurd, and morbid comedy, as a Hasidic cantor (Geza Rohrig) becomes obsessed with trying to find out how long it will take his recently deceased wife's remains to decompose into dust so that her spirit can be free.

He will eventually team up with a reluctant community college science professor (Matthew Broderick) to try and get some answers. They will employ some highly bizarre and weird techniques to try and accomplish this.

I found most of the intended deadpan humor didn't quite work here, but as the film progressed I did find some of it darkly funny, like the scene with the security guard (Natalie E. Carter) at the Tennessee body farm.

Overall, after reading so many glowing reviews from pro critics I came away disappointed with this movie. It's not an easy watch for sure, but it also was unlike anything I can recall seeing on screen before.

I can safely say To Dust is... Quite unlike most movie - or maybe any movie - about grief I can think of... uh... Maybe it's reverse Hassidic Frankenstein? Instead of resurrecting a body to life it's bringing the body to get into the Earth quicker?! This is followed to some wonderfully bizarre extremes.

The main character is a bit hard to really get into due to his... Ways about him, which is being stubborn and prickly and totally set in his mindset regarding the body and the soul (not a slight on the actor, he does what hes asked to do), and Broderick acts his Brodericky self off. It's a truly interesting independent film dramedy that doesn't compromise really, which is a strength and a detriment. It's a view into a hermetically sealed world done with humor, even if it's hit or miss, and genuine pathos.

Thank you for getting into producing, Ron Perlman!

This film is so morbid, literally. It is a sad to see that the man is so disturbed and stuck due to his wife's passing, but his morbid fascination with the morbid is just very disturbing. Be prepared if you really are going to watch this. It contains very very disturbing scenes.

This is an unknown dark comedy gem, definitely worth checking out if you are into bizarre arthouse movies. It has got a gorgeous style of direction, with a dark, yet wonderful serene kind of feel to it, which I was really impressed by!

This movie is best described as a drama comedy. The drama part is about the man's unconsolable grief about his wifes death. The comedy part is the bizarre hilarious ways in which the man tries to console himself. One way of finding consolation is by burrying a pig to literally see it rotting away in the ground. You'll understand why, if you start watching...

Yes, this all might sound bizarre and even gross, but everything is done with the utmost respect for those feelings of grief everyone experiences when a loved one dies. There are many ways of grieving and this movie portrays one the most bizarre ways of grieving I have ever witnessed.

An extraoridinary movie, although it may not be suited for the faint of hearted, it is still so magnificently subtle in direction and genuinly goodhearted in nature. Really impressive and touching story about grief.

Would have gotten nine stars except the characterization of the C.C. prof was more comical than realistic, and any half way adequate collegiate anthropology or forensic taphonomy dept. or natural history museum could have given direction to questions of decomposition. Anyway, sort-of-science meets orthodox Jew (actually an Hasidic cantor) in this at times amusing, at times heartfelt devotion, journey & discovery of soulful death. The pig (other animals have also been time lapsed filmed) cycle of returning nutrients to the earth is a film classic which brings up the question of the effects of embalming chemicals & casket materials.