Scarlett Riley

this was one of those movies where it felt like the screen wrapped itself around the edges of my vision and held me inside it until the credits rolled. it stirred up a feeling i haven't experienced in about a year, but not in a way that felt intrusive. instead, it felt like enough time had passed that I could sit with the thoughts it brought back and simply reflect on them which at one point in time would've been harder to do. more than anything, this film taps into something almost impossible to describe. it's not a movie i'm particularly eager to dissect on a technical level (or hear arguments about) because what it offered me was reflection rather than craft analysis. it mainly brings to mind my favorite quote from the "Before Trilogy":* * *"i always have this strange feeling that I am this very old woman laying down about to die. you know, that my life is just her memories, or something."* and it's for the same reason that i resonate with this quote that this film resonated with me. it captures the feeling of desperately trying to absorb something beautiful before it slips away and the realization that time moves forward regardless, and that all you can do is choose how fully you'll inhabit it while it's yours, thus the line *“is it better to speak or to die”.*