First Reformed (Paul Schrader, 2017): USA | UK | Australia

Reviewed by Helios Miller. Viewed at the 2019 Santa Barbara Film Festival.

Journal Entry #13

From Paul’s perspective, this journal is my way to confide in the written word, a type of prayer. How will I edit myself? Am I afraid to lay spelling mistakes bear or is it unreasonable to think anyone will actually read this? Really the best I can say is “My god is that opening shot beautiful.”

The church’s towering cross scrapes the sky for just a moment of sunshine, but that light will never come. The crisp silence with shake you out of your seat and leave you itching for one more moment of this film’s square window into a pastor’s life.

Watching this I can’t help, but feel like I’m being judged. As if something could go wrong at any moment, like we’re watching our pastor balance on the edge of a knife. Maybe it’s the church itself. Those tall white buildings have always creeped me out. But not being a member of a Western, Christian, or Protestant sense I wonder if it’s more or less creepy for me than a follower. Really the only time I’ve been in a church was for a funeral.

I’ll avoid mentioning any direct detail of this film. You should only watch this with a fresh mind, untainted by any review or trailer, however to get you in the theater I’ll say this: While this film is slow, it has this comfortable quality with a bite. Like laying in the snow and realizing you can’t feel the first inch of your skin. It should also be said that any attempt to predict this film will only leave you wrong or distracted from a good experience.

First Reformed’s momentum is unstoppable, it’s writing impeccable, and a third positive word ending in -able. From the same screenwriter as Taxi Driver, you’re in good hands to see a quality film. When a Director writes and directs their work, they are putting everything they have into the belief that their film must be an exact way. It pays off as perception is key to this film’s power. See this film in theaters if it’s near and watch at home in the dark.