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GERRY
is in some ways a return to roots for director Gus Van Sant. The
motifs of moving clouds and the desert imagery may recall his
early works. But GERRY is even more ambitious. Highly influenced
by Hungarian filmmaker Bela Tarr, the film uses minimal dialogue
and long, languishing shots to achieve a meditative mood.
GERRY
(2003)
This page was created on May 16, 2003
This page was last updated on
December 4, 2003
Review -click here
About this Film -click her
Spiritual Connections -click here
Forum -click here
Dial up modems will take a few moments
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| CREDITS |
| Directed
by Gus Van Sant
Screenplay by Casey Affleck & Matt Damon
Casey
Affleck .... Gerry
Matt Damon .... Gerry
Produced
by
Jay Hernandez .... associate producer
Dany Wolf .... producer
Original Music by Arvo Pärt
Cinematography by Harris Savides
Film Editing by Casey Affleck, Matt Damon and Gus Van Sant
MPAA: Rated R for language.
Runtime: 103 min
For rating reasons, go to FILMRATINGS.COM,
and MPAA.ORG.
Parents, please refer to PARENTALGUIDE.ORG
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| TRAILERS
AND CLIPS |
| Various
Quicktime
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| POSTER |
|
Gerry
27 in x 40 in
Buy This Double-sided poster At AllPosters.com
Framed | Mounted |
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| SYNOPSIS
|
 In
Gus Van Sant's GERRY, a film more concerned with atmosphere and visual
breadth than with story or plot, a frivolous hike through the desert
evolves into an existential journey for two young men. The film features
only two characters, both named Gerry and played by the film's co-creators
Casey Affleck and Matt Damon. Driving through a desert populated with
imposing rock formations and bordered by miles of sky, the two Gerrys
stop to see an unspecified "thing" which they are unable
to find. The two young men then attempt to return to their car, but
cannot find the pathway back. As they wander through the increasingly
difficult desert terrain, their journey strains their friendship and
becomes an exploration that is clearly about more than just finding
the car.
After several
commercial projects, GERRY is in some ways a return to roots for
director Gus Van Sant. The motifs of moving clouds and the desert
imagery may recall his early works--MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO and EVEN
COWGIRLS GET THE BLUES--but GERRY is even more ambitious than those
revered projects. Highly influenced by Hungarian filmmaker Bela
Tarr (WERCKMEISTER HARMONIES), the film uses minimal dialogue and
long, languishing shots to achieve a meditative mood.
|
 REVIEW
By Benn Becker
Benn has an undergradute degree in Finance from the University of Nebraska and is working towards a masters in both Business and English. He owns some farmland and is currently writing a novel. He lives in Lincoln, NE. |
 ?Gerry?
is a unique, picturesque, and bold film. It is minimalist in nature
and there are periods with little dialogue. Director Gus Van Sant
states he is ?looking to recover a lost art of filmmaking, built
on long takes, spare editing, and mobile compositions that asks
viewers to put ideas together.? Given the short attention-span of
filmgoers these days, the film is not for everyone. It takes a patient
viewer to enjoy ?Gerry?.
The film was shot in Argentina, Death Valley, and the Utah Salt
Flats. Matt Damon and Casey Affleck?s characters are apparent long-time
friends who travel to a desert trail to hike and proceed to get
lost. The rest of the film simply follows the testing of their mental
toughness and their attempt to find their way. They refer to each
other as Gerry and use the name as a verb much like the old cartoon
?The Smurfs?--?Gerrying the rendezvous point? equates to losing
track of where to meet each other.
One could argue that the film is philosophically existential. In
her review on popmatters.com, Cynthia Fuchs states that Gerry is
about ?movement that seems hopeless, that takes you nowhere, that?s
increasingly slowed, but increasingly urgent.? The film seems to
be about life--we wonder around searching for meaning, often chasing
illusions and mirages, always in a hurry in an accelerating society.
We are all traveling different paths and roads--sometimes in circles,
sometimes backwards in order to go forward. The more we deny God?s
presence in our lives, the more hopeless we can become as the years
pass. Philip Yancey states in The Jesus I Never Knew, ?Jesus? first
coming did not solve the problems of planet Earth, rather it presented
a vision of God?s kingdom to help break the earthly spell of delusion."
The Holy Spirit can give us direction. Gerry and Gerry?s trek is
much like our trek through life as we search for meaning. Having
no specific name for each character shows how all humans are virtually
in the same boat. A ways into the hike the Gerrys decide to head
back commenting ?it?s just that thing at the end of the trail.?
Is it worth chasing all the idols of the world when we know that
it eventually ends in futility and disillusionment. (Mark 8:36 ?What
good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul??)
After a night in the desert, the characters begin to realize just
how lost they are. They traverse into the foothills of the mountains
trying to get a better view of where they?re at. Each one tries
to climb higher and higher to get a better vantage point to no avail.
We may search and search and search for meaning--climbing a corporate
ladder, buying new things, moving to a new area, getting plastic
surgery--but eventually we have to turn inward and discover our
divine nature for true meaning.
Things are not bad, nor is wealth, but rather it?s our perspective
on them. We live in a culture that encourages taking on overbearing
debt to look the part. The average American household carries over
$6000 of credit card debt--the highest in our history and getting
higher each day. What kind of pressure does this put on a family?
Very scary when you consider financial stress is the #1 reason for
divorce. I can?t help but think for many families it?s not lack
of money, but rather lack of spending discipline. It?s so tough
when the pressure of the culture tells you differently. Personal
bankruptcies are at an all-time high. Homes are bigger, yet families
are smaller. More hours to work to get ahead to meet the expanded
mortgage, more lawn to take care of, less time with spouses and
children, and more stress. We?re often sold an image that doesn?t
even exist--a mirage much like one in the desert. In desperation
and disillusionment Gerry comments, ?We haven?t seen any of the
$&#!-ing stuff that we?ve seen.? What looks one way coming, looks
a whole lot different up close. In a line from the David Gray song
?Birds Without Wings?--?I?m tearing off the fancy wrapping; find
an empty package. We need to realize that we cannot find happiness
SOLELY in things.
The many quiet moments of the film give you a chance to think. When
doubt enters as to whether the Gerrys will make it out alive, I
began to think about how detached from true life we have become
as a society. We live in comfort and security, which isn?t a bad
thing, but we don?t appreciate life as much as the ancients and
even our forefathers who often faced death on a regular basis. Seems
they understood death in a more rational way and realized it was
part of life--we seem to run from it at any cost. We find other
superficial things to worry about. We expect to live a long life
even though there are many, many reminders around us that life is
fragile--40,000 children a day die of starvation, car accidents
are claiming lives at this very moment, not to mention abortions.
I say this not to depress anyone, but it helps me to realize and
thank God for the gift of each and every day because it can be taken
from us at any moment. It?s not a privilege or a right, but a gift.
Lord help us to realize that our days on this Earth are numbered
so we can fully enjoy and appreciate the days.
The end of the film may show that once we?ve gone through something
of magnitude, our lives can never be the same. Other people may
be unable to relate--we each have our own perspective and experiences.
The Holy Spirit gives us the gift (and sometimes curse) of empathy.
It can be a burden to know the full truth and how much pain and
evil exists in this world, but Christ never promised his followers
anything in this world but persecution. However there is also peace
to be found in Jesus. (John 16:33 -- ?I have told you these things,
so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble.
But take heart! I have overcome the world.?)
"We are a nation in which every criminal has the right to a lawyer,
yet we don't feel every sick person has the right to a doctor."
-- Jocelyn Elders |
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