Always Shine, the new film from director Sophia Takal, tells the story of two friends on a weekend getaway to the wooded community of Big Sur. Anna (Mackenzie Davis) and Beth (Caitlin FitzGerald) are both actresses and their tight-knit friendship has undergone some unraveling as Beth is on the precipice of success as Anna struggles to find her footing. At times, Always Shine is an audacious piece of filmmaking that is always toying with the audience with its blistering fast edits, a mixture of sound and fury that induces delirium in its viewers. At other times, it meanders in some scenes that feel like they’re on repeat, making Always Shine a real mixed bag as a whole, but when it’s working it’s dazzling to behold.
The script by Lawrence Michael Levine, who also plays the supporting character Jesse in the film, certainly builds its tension between the two lead characters, both of whom have nothing to play against other than each other. Where it runs into trouble is when the character dynamic has been firmly established and continues to drive home what’s already more than apparent. Most of all, Always Shine is anchored by the fabulous performance by Mackenzie Davis, whose character is practically always on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
Sophia Takal uses a variety of cinematic devices to distort the audience’s perception during Always Shine that the filmmaker’s sheer audacity sets it above more compelling stories. Opening with a long shot of Caitlin FitzGerald auditioning only to follow it up with a frenzy of blaring sound and lightning fast edits before showing a similar scene with Mackenzie Davis, only she’s not auditioning; she’s fighting with a worker over a car repair bill. It’s a great cinematic device that illustrates the difference in the two women’s situations, one that will escalate as the film progresses.
Always Shine is a mostly engrossing tale of friendship and jealousy that builds and builds before it twists and turns down the home stretch. The film works best when Sophia Takal eschews conventional cinematic form from both a storytelling and stylistic perspective. Always Shine is at its weakest when it feels like a conventional movie, but the combination of its more standard aspects in conjunction with its most audacious makes the movie a unique cinematic experience.
Always Shine
- Overall Score
Summary
A tale of jealousy with some audacious cinematic techniques, Always Shine works best when it eschews conventional filmmaking style for a disorienting effect in director Sophia Takal’s cerebral thriller.
