UPSTREAM COLOR *

Shane Carruth's first film, "Primer", was very highly praised but not by me. I didn't mind that it was 'obscure' but I hated its patronising smart-ass attitude, that we 'get it' even if it wasn't worth getting in the first place. Still, if I actively disliked it I admired its attempt at doing something different and there was always enough there to make me think that Carruth had more to offer. And here we have it; "Upstream Color" may be even more obscure and it certainly won't draw the crowds on a Saturday night but it's bold and imaginative and really quite disturbing. There's hardly a shot in this picture that doesn't earn its place though it is almost impossible to describe. If you had to categorize it, it would probably fall into the cinema of 'body-horror', at least initially, that Cronenberg was so good at but it's even harder to get a handle on what is happening than it was with Cronenberg. Dialogue is virtually non-existent and what cast there is go through the motions rather than actually turn in 'performances' but it is visually extraordinary and I suppose it does represent some kind of great leap forward fort Carruth who not only wrote and directed the film but also was the DoP, co-editor, composer and male lead. In time I would hope that he might start applying his very obvious talents to more conventional narratives. After all, there's nothing wrong with a good story and it is still possible to embrace the mainstream without sacrificing your integrity; it worked for Cronenberg and it worked for Christopher Nolan so there's no reason why it can't work for Carruth should he only try.