The details make all of the difference in Kazik Radwanski’s third feature Anne at 13.000 ft. From telling first date drink orders, to passive aggressive snipes from co-worker, this world is one we’re in for just seventy-five minutes. Yet, it is one where the details build a world so real, even this short duration feels like it might be too much.
Indie darling Deragh Campbell has had a prolific career thus far, and while I have not been able to see all of her work to date, this is undoubtedly her at her best. As Anne, a daycare worker in her late twenties with a crippling case of adolescentilism. Campbell occupies a space of tragic fragility, reminiscent of the great Gena Rowland’s performances from Cassavetes’ golden age. It’s the little things, such her changing speech patterns, from adult-like amongst the children to child-like amongst the adults, that efficiently communicates all the necessary information.
There is a tension effervescently boiling below the surface of Anne at 13.000 ft. It’s found in the increasingly present smash cuts to black, and progressively frantic editing style. Most ardently contributing to this effect is the work of cinematographer Nikolay Michaylov, whose handheld camerawork pokes and prods its subjects. Almost exclusively shot in close-ups, this proximity feels invasive as opposed to intimate. Ultimately, regardless of if Radwanski wishes to move closer to being the heir apparent to Cassavetes or not, this is a hell of a full-force sky-dive in that direction.
- Release Date: 9/8/2019
