FILM

USA 2011 92 mins Dir: Mike Cahill Starring: Brit Marling, William Mapother

Things the movies tell us, part 94. When a mysterious planet appears in the sky, attractive young blonde women are compelled to remove all their clothes and bathe in the glow of its reflected light. Kirsten Dunst did it in 'Melancholia' and now Brit Marling does it in 'Another Earth', so this must be true. An ultra-low-budget indie flick trading in Big Ideas, Mike Cahill's feature debut was the unexpected hit of this year's Sundance Film Festival. That should be sufficient to alert the wary not to expect too much in the way of exploration of its intriguing 'parallel earth' theme, which takes a back seat to more standard-issue Sundance low-key grief and guilt fare.

Teenager Rhoda Williams (Marling) has just got into MIT and is drunkenly driving home after a celebration with her chums. The radio is filled with chatter about a strange new planet that is about to become visible in the night sky. Craning her head to take a look, she smashes into another car, leaving its driver, celebrated composer John Burroughs (Mapother), in a coma and killing his pregnant wife and child. Four years later, she emerges from the slammer still consumed by guilt and takes a lowly job as a cleaner. In the meantime, it has become apparent that the new planet is a perfect replica of the earth. This has prompted much parallel universe theorising, existential angst, talk radio blather, and nutters going round in tinfoil helmets. But 'Another Earth' is less concerned with science and speculation than it is with Rhoda's befriending of the now-dishevelled, grief-stricken John, without disclosing who she is. In the background lies the alluring proximity of another life in which that devastating split-second mistake might not have been made.

With its woozy, 'Solaris'-esque vibe, 'Another Earth' puts a vaguely science-y spin on the 'what if?' genre, which reached its apogee with 'Sliding Doors'. The film seems to step up a gear when Rhoda enters an essay competition to win a place on the first space flight to 'Earth 2', but you may be disappointed by the self-consciously enigmatic ending. That said, Cahill achieves wonders on his minuscule budget, making creative use of his hometown locations and sparing if striking digital effects - including that wonderful image of a duplicate earth hanging in the sky, pregnant with possibility. (Robin Askew)

website www.foxsearchlight.com/anotherearth/

Opens: December 9

Copyright Robin Askew 2011