It’s no secret I love Brit Marling and her Georgetown filmmaking buddies Mike Cahill and Zal Batmanglij. Seeing Another Earth and Sound of My Voice at my first Sundance, three years ago now, was a real case of festival magic. Marling jumped out at me as a talent to watch, in her powerful performances for sure but even more so for her contributions to the screenplays for both movies. I followed Marling’s progress, covering the theatrical releases of both films, and catching her second collaboration with Batmanglij, The East, when it premiered last year.
I have been waiting to see what Cahill does next, so I’ve been anticipating I Origins for a long time. I totally called it early that it would premiere here (and that Searchlight would ultimately pick it up, hello). It is very interesting to see where Cahill takes his balance of scientific concepts and human emotion. Origins didn’t break my heart or touch my soul like Another Earth did, maybe because it was working my brain so hard. I see where Cahill is going as an artist and it is to worthwhile places. However, my support of interesting filmmakers does not give them a free pass. I Origins has some problems, and I would regret it if I didn’t document my thoughts while they’re still fresh.
Dr. Ian Gray (Michael Pitt) is a scientist researching eyes, trying to figure out a way to create vision in creatures that don’t have ocular organs. His first year research assistant Karen (Marling) proves much more capable than the usual intern and actually sets to work researching every species that could give them the key to creating eyes. Meanwhile, Ian falls in love with Sofi (Astrid Berges-Frisbey) and debates science versus theology with her. Guess which side Ian is on. The more Karen and Ian discover about eyes, the more connections they illuminate in the bigger picture.
For a while I thought I Origins was Mike Cahill’s Animal House, just instead of a rowdy fraternity it was science geniuses. I was totally on board for that, and it’s my favorite part of the movie. He’s still using science to explore metaphysical or emotional ideas. In this case, Ian is determined to prove that the unique science of eyes disproves intelligent design. The human element is that his young love with Sofi is still adorable. There’s not enough Brit, but I respect the idea of playing a supporting role for your partner. Karen does support Ian in all of his endeavors. Berges-Frisbey is a lovely discovery in a role where you can notice her, as opposed to Pirates of the Caribbean 4.
Maybe life and science just isn’t quite as organic as sci-fi and grief. I mean, listen to this description. I’m giving the Cliff’s Notes and this is some really specific intellectual stuff. With Another Earth, even as artsy as it got, you can get that people are debating the possibilities of a parallel planet and how it might impact them. This eye science illuminates a field I’ve clearly never known before, but it also takes a lot of work to draw its parallels. It completely draws them, I’m not faulting that, it just seems like a uniquely Sundance challenge. It’s a good experiment, you can use über science to explore humanity and still have a film there, but only because I specifically came to Sundance to work that hard. I’m totally on Cahill’s wavelength about the soul and spirit. I agree with where I Origins goes in the end, but I think his script works too hard to make the story support those ideas. Tying the characters into a database of eyes, for example, takes a lot of finagling. I did catch on to what the science was going to reveal, so I’m proud of myself.
Some of the narrative plot points are so extreme, I half respect Cahill for using such extreme events to turn the plot the way he needs to, but I half wonder if it really serves the story. I mean, it definitely serves the story but it comes with shock value too. I even think the most shocking scene was inspired by a behind the scenes story on Cahill’s first film Boxers and Ballerinas. Art imitates life and makes it more violent. I prefer the subtlety of Another Earth, not that artists always have to do the same things. Because this is Sundance, a character development involves Ian jerking off. I’m pro-masturbation, yet I did not relate to Ian in that scene.
Ian’s final experiment left me with a lot more practical questions than scientific ones, but alas I don’t want to spoil it. If nobody questions Ian’s actions with his last test subject, but people were all upset that Superman allowed collateral damage, then I don’t know what to believe anymore.
I would compare I Origins to Primer, which is a favorable comparison but won’t bode well for the financial prospects of Origins. It’s much more polished than Primer, and even more emotional since Primer was so focused on the intellectual. Primer is a movie I appreciate more than connect with, so Origins is somewhere in between. Maybe now Cahill can make Another Earth 2: Earth Harder, where the two Brits fight. Franchise Fred approves this sequel. I’ll even be up for More Origins because the setup for future discoveries is where it gets really juicy.
Fred Topel is a staff writer at CraveOnline and the man behind Best Episode Ever and The Shelf Space Awards. Follow him on Twitter at @FredTopel.
