More from the movie corner of Graziella: First Reformed
With this week’s film we return to the United States. Written and directed by Paul Schrader, First Reformed (2017) has been called by a famous critic “a stunning, enrapturing film, a crowning work by one of the American cinema’s most essential artists.” Starring Ethan Hawke as a Protestant minister undergoing a crisis (of faith?), First Reformed tries to define itself against many of the conventions of mainstream moviemaking. In fact, this is the rare gem of an American film that draws inspiration from such art cinema giants as Ingmar Bergman, Carl Dreyer, Andrei Tarkowsky, and, of course, Robert Bresson, whose seminal Journal of a Country Priest (1951) Schrader’s film takes up and tweaks. Not to be missed if you’re serious about watching good films. And I’d be curious to know what you think about the ending….
Watch First Reformed on Kanopy here.
