Levity (2003)

After serving over twenty years in jail for the murder of a young cashier during a bungled robbery, Manual Jordan returns to the town of his crime. Hooking up with the strange minister Miles Evans, and befriending two ladies who themselves are searching for something, Manual may find redemption comes in many guises.

Well well, yet another film dealing in that tried and tested thematic called redemption. But please don't let any sort of familiarity stop you from catching this film, for on atmospherics alone this deserves to be watched, that it also boasts a cast on prime form should also be enough to tempt you in. It's an odd film any many ways, its serious nature is covered in a quirky sort of haze, the zippy soundtrack blending in with the moody ambiance created by the characters within the piece. It's with the characters, each afforded excellent fleshing by writer director Ed Solomon, that Levity rises above its simplicity. This is no film for anyone searching for histrionics and blood letting, and paced as slowly as it is, you will need to have that virtue known as patience. But for those inclined towards a philosophical approach with redemption, your patience will most assuredly be rewarded.

Billy Bob Thornton is Manual, the centre of the story, scraggy grey haired after years in prison, this is yet another Thornton performance full of emotional depth. With just one pained silent expression, Thornton has the knack of saying so much about his characters being, and here he gets to do it often. Kirsten Dunst arguably gives the best performance of her career as troubled Sofia Mellinger. The daughter of a has been singer, Sofia is missing guidance in her life, content to get stoned and amble aimlessly thru life, Dunst gives her a believability that shines during the interplay with the laconic like Thornton. Top honours go to Holly Hunter as Adele Easley, who is the main focus for Jordan's attentions {the reasons are obvious from the outset}. Adele is trying to make all the points in her life connect, a goal that appears unlikely to be achieved, with Hunter {something of an indie darling this decade} giving gravitas to Adele's confusion and state of mind. Fairing less better is Morgan Freeman as Miles Evans, not bad per se, but his fluctuating gravel voice detracts from the dark mystery lurking within the character's make up.

Nicely shot in Montréal, Québec, Canada by Roger Deakins, Levity is an interesting and smartly scripted piece. It's a given that it will not be for everyone, but it's hoped that just like it did me, it will creep up on you and stay on your mind for a few days afterwards. 8/10

Fmovies: How does one make things right? Seek forgiveness? Where does redemption reside and how do you get there? How does a wounded soul reconcile guilt? This is a slow and thoughtful character study set during a grim and dreary winter in an urban town. This is not a Hollywood movie. It's raw with real life. It's apparent ugliness is its sheer inescapable beauty. Morality does exist no matter how we try to hide. Thornton, after spending over 20 years in prison for the murder of a young convenience store clerk during a robbery gone haywire in his youth, is drawn to return to his old neighborhood to visit the older sister of the young man he killed, played by Holly Hunter. She doesn't quite know who he really is since so many years have gone by. Thornton was content to live out his remaining years behind bars but must now face his past because his sentence was suddenly commuted. Bleak with melancholy, this type of film gets shunned by audiences and it's a shame. Morgan Freeman plays a mysterious soup kitchen minister who has his own issues, whom Thornton comes to work for. Freeman is a natural actor and believable in any role. The story unfolds slowly without gimmicks. At times, Thornton happens to find himself visited by the ghostly apparition of the young man whom he killed, while he is in the process of seeking resolution and atonement. His simple desire is to somehow make amends. He wants to be forgiven but, strangely, he is unable and unwilling to forgive himself. Unfortunately, unresolved redemption seems to be too deep a theme for contemporary audiences who are hooked on chills and thrills and pyrotechnics. This is an independent film, the kind that many people just don't get. A movie for your quiet time or a rainy night. Something different and refreshing. And no silly happy ending to mar the proceedings.

I don't care what anybody says. I thought these was one of the only films so beautiful in form and attractive in style worth commenting on (besides i comment pure 10s). It is a beautiful story about a man that looks at life after having regretfully sined and figures that in his life, the sin he committed is so wrong, he will never be redeemed, no matter how sorry, or sad or repented he is upon his sin. the beauty of the movie is that it slips behind you and leaves him with the path to ascension before his eyes, proving that no matter the sin, repent and redemption is possible if the soul asks for it and that is what makes this movie oh so beautiful.

With superb acting and directing and an amazingly extremist, harsh yet true look at life that acts as a dagger to the heart of the watcher who knows what he's looking for. Unexplainably good, just lets say tears fell out of my eyes, but not because it was sad, more around its excellence which i believe deserves a room besides those humanistic movies that simply explain just how people are deep down: not quite so bad.

Levity fmovies. "Levity" (2003) Artfully melancholic. Real, perhaps even surreal as this story quietly, yet gracefully plumbs the depths between reality & perception, introspection, fate and (mis)fortune. Heart-wrenching in its sincerity.

The story revolves about a man freed from concrete walls and bars, but not of his conscious. What follows is a remarkable journey into the thought and life of a man seeking redemption. As his journey begins, he encounters the beginnings of a new life. Laid bare & unpretentious, the mood is set within the confines of what one may encounter upon re-entering society. The cinematography is excellent, appropriate and chillingly in-line with the theme of this movie. Top-notch actors in supporting roles make this film a "must see". This is, a great film.

A recently paroled convict, who as a teenager shot and killed a young convenience store worker, is left to find his way in society; he's offered a custodial job from a hot-tempered, streetwise pastor, and hopes to connect with the sister of his victim in order to complete the cycle of redemption--but he finds it isn't that easy. Billy Bob Thornton gives a controlled, emotional performance that comes from deep within. The film isn't quite in balance--and has some quirky, uncertain moments near the beginning that either don't ring true or just don't feel natural--but stick with it and you might find resonance in the extraordinary acting and the way the story arcs in just the right way. Terrific casting and performances, atmospheric production and locales, several amazing, emotional moments. *** from ****

One of the greatest problems in Hollywood today is the misperception that for a movie to be a winner, you need gunfights, women in tight clothes, sexual innuendoes, and few dozen explosions. Levity has none of these, and it shines.

Billy Bob Thornton play Emmanuel Jordan, a man released from prison for killing a convenience store clerk. Jordan appears genuinely humbled by his experience, a man deeply in need of redemption: his eyes are sunken, his hair grown long, and one cannot help but think that all he needs to complete the look is a sackcloth and ashes on his forehead. Too many ex-convicts in films are leering madman, already planning their next caper. Even the character's name speaks of a spiritual role: Jordan means, "Descending"; Emmanuel means, "God is with us".

Pulled from the street by Miles Evans (Morgan Freeman), a tired preacher running a mission, Jordan begins his duties as a custodian, working with quiet efficiency. He also begins working on his redemption, following the steps laid out in a medieval manuscript. One of the steps involves giving back to the ones you've hurt. He seeks out Adele Easley, the sister of the teenager he killed and begins adding to her life. She is a single mother, struggling to correct the life of her son, whom she has named Abner, after her dead brother. Jordan also finds time to work with Sofia Mellinger (Kirsten Dunst), a teenager who seems to be self-destructing in front of his very eyes.

It's been said that when one takes a life, you remain one step removed from the rest of the humanity. That is the way Jordan looks and moves. Early in the film he is standing in an underground passage, and everyone else is moving around him. His eyes--which look convincingly haunted--stare at the jostling crowds with a numbness that leaves you chilled. Though the troubled youths he works with mock his sallow face, they themselves are living close to death themselves (gunshots and drive-bys riddle their conversations) but are unaware of its power or consequences. Jordan, sadder and wiser, struggles to make them aware the fragility of their lives; like the prophet he is named after, he has much wisdom to offer, but knows not how to give voice to it.

One of the great messages of this film is that appearances are deceiving. Sofia seems to be the happy-go-lucky teenager, but Jordan learns she is living in a soon-to-be foreclosed house, and has virtually nothing to her name. Adele, though beautiful, has more demons than her dead brother. Even Preacher Miles is hiding a wounded soul, and his final secret leaves you stunned. The cityscape itself (Montreal, Canada) seems shiny, but their is a cold texture beneath which deals mercilessly with its inhabitants.

Levity is a keeper, and should be seen by all. Like its message, the quiet cast hides much beneath its quiet exterior.