Ava DuVernay is an amazing director, and she has found a project worth her ambitions once again with her latest film. Her previous feature - the adaptation of the nearly impossible to adapt book A Wrinkle in Time (2018)- was ambitious though maybe not a complete work, however she showed what she could do with a larger budget. But honestly she always excels on the more intimate story, with a subject closer to her heart. Her early indie Middle of Nowhere (2012) I have talked about in length before, while her breakout movie Selma (2014) about the MLK Selma march which remains an underrate classic by many. With Origin she combines everything she does well- the hard to adapt book (Caste from 2020 which was best seller on the New York Times list for a while) and matching with sensibilities that remain close to her heart- make this a truly one of a kind movie going experience.
Her work on documentary The 13th (2017) finds a master experience that blends with this story about combining the history of slavery with the treatment of Jewish people in WW2 and the current caste system in India and other similar countries. Stated many times in the movie but always with good reason, main character Isabel Wilkerson (Ellis-Taylor) channels the director by stating slavery of African Americans was more about ones place in a class/Caste system than race, and the parallels she draws make this plain to see even though it is a difficult subject to broach. Performance by Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor and Jon Bernthal make this a very poignant romance on top of telling and important story and her character Isabel suffers family loss after loss trying to adapt the book. Some have accused the movie of being too didactic, but I find it extremely well made and not only entertaining but powerful and life-altering. The fact that it got nominated for zerooooo major awards means Duvernay is coloring outside the lines for sure in the way she makes movies, making her one of the most interesting directors of our time.
Her work on documentary The 13th (2017) finds a master experience that blends with this story about combining the history of slavery with the treatment of Jewish people in WW2 and the current caste system in India and other similar countries. Stated many times in the movie but always with good reason, main character Isabel Wilkerson (Ellis-Taylor) channels the director by stating slavery of African Americans was more about ones place in a class/Caste system than race, and the parallels she draws make this plain to see even though it is a difficult subject to broach. Performance by Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor and Jon Bernthal make this a very poignant romance on top of telling and important story and her character Isabel suffers family loss after loss trying to adapt the book. Some have accused the movie of being too didactic, but I find it extremely well made and not only entertaining but powerful and life-altering. The fact that it got nominated for zerooooo major awards means Duvernay is coloring outside the lines for sure in the way she makes movies, making her one of the most interesting directors of our time.