After seeing CONDITION, I was, for a few days, extremely sensitive to my aural surroundings. The roar of traffic in Midtown, the lapping of water on the Westside docks, the pouring of milk. It seemed the frequencies had been turned way up and I was zoomed in- paying attention to the subtleties and decoding new meanings from these sources. CONDITION is part meditation, part loose narrative. It focuses on a character named Alaska who, after experiencing an urban emergency, is brought to the woods by a therapist. There is much mystery to the film, so the details of what exactly happened in the city are hinted at, but not named. The sound of emergency horns and flashes of skyscrapers bring about feelings of post 911 anxiety. Shortly after setting up tent for her patient, the therapist discovers Alaska has disappeared and begins and increasingly anxious journey to bring her back to safety. There is a spareness to the dialog and the landscape. Alaska roams the forest searching for objects that capture her attention and exploring them for their ability to create a feeling of the magical or the familiar. She feels like she is being followed not only by her therapist, but also by forces from the cities' emergency. While in hiding/exploring- she discovers many beautiful objects- some like rope or shells, which can be contained; others like the water cannot. Many of the shots are breathtaking, especially those about water. The piece has a gentle tempo reflecting a natural world that is more concerned with peace than productivity. CONDITION is many things: meditation, warning, reflection of a culture where for all our spoken language, we so often fail to connect. It helped me to slow down and to enjoy all the subtle pleasures of the senses.
