Review of Chrystal

Chrystal (2004)
10/10
An example of what movies can be at their best
16 April 2005
The story is of doomed lovers, but the story is just part of what this movie is about.

The characters are gounded in a vanishing hill culture of the rural south, and much of what they say, do, and are derives from that culture. Condemned to act their roles, they move toward an inevitable climax while the viewer hopes for another resolution.

The performances are stellar. There are sections of dialogue that will haunt you and make you think. This movie is a deeply reverential evocation of a vanishing way of life. Sometimes it is caricature (Snake), but it is always true at an emotional level. I have to think the author was inspired by Donald Harington's novels of Staymore.

One of the finest movies in a long, long, time.
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