Acts of Worship
Acts of Worship
| 01 January 2001 (USA)
Acts of Worship Trailers

Alix is taken in by a photographer, Digna, who despite her friends' protests, tries to help Alix piece her life back together and overcome her addictions.

Reviews
nabeyakeudon

I can't really say that I enjoyed this movie, considering the subject nature...but it did make me think, and most importantly, feel.Alix and Digna seem like two totally different people. Alix is a drug addict. She lives on the streets of NYC and lives a daily life of finding money and a fix and a place to sleep - in that order, often doing shady things to accomplish them. Digna is a successful photographer who has a great boyfriend, a nice apartment and seems to be rapidly advancing through her career.Digna lives next door to someone that Alix gets high with and they know each other on a first-name basis. Soon, they both end up entering each other's worlds, and finding out just how similar their lives really are.I feel like many of the scenes in this film are very realistic, especially the scenes of Alix on the street and how she lives her daily life. I think Ana Reeder did a great job in those scenes, and must have done quite a bit of research before playing this role.I felt a little different regarding Michael Hyatt (Digna). Some of the scenes seemed a little shallow as far as acting - not enough depth into the character. I don't think this was mostly her fault though, I think the script could have been better in some places, such as the scenes with Digna and her boyfriend, Anthony (Nestor Rodriquez). I didn't feel like they were much of a loving couple, just kind of bland and blah.All in all though, this film is a very refreshing change from the over-acted, over-produced, high budget dramas that are out there. The movement of the camera and angles made this film seem like you were watching a documentary at times - which to me, is a good thing. I applaud the director, Rosemary Rodriquez, for taking a step to make this film. She mentions in the featurette on the DVD that she didn't want to glamorize drug addiction but show it for what it really is. She did a great job.I felt like there was so much beauty in the scenes of the film - I love watching the streets of NYC, however, what goes on isn't always beautiful. Very tragic. Rosemary Rodriquez has helped us to see humanity on the streets.

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dbborroughs

This is the autobiographical story of a young girl who gets hooked on crack and worse. At times this is an incredibly painful film to watch as we go through what it takes to live on the street and to get enough money to get that days fix. The performances are more often than not right on and the film can carry you along in rather unpleasant ways. The trouble is that as good as the film is it can, at times, come off clichéd. This is not the first film to depict life of an addict and so some of it seems like we've seen it all before. The film making is at times too polished and it grinds against the grittiness of the story.My rating of 6 out of 10 might be a bit low. Intitally I was more up with the film, however in reading on the film I cam across a few negative reviews and my thoughts of the film have been undergoing a revision due to valid points that were made. Still I recommend the film to anyone who likes real life stories, or independent film making.

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tazzwum

one of the best movies i've ever seen that deals with addiction- its painful and heartbreaking, but real... it is truth and doesn't glamorize 'using' like many movies do... i thank Ms. Rodriguez for bringing such an amazing movie to the screens and letting her own experiences and visions be seen. i thought the story was well done- she has an amazing way of portraying the main characters, and the way they tend to mesh together towards the end and take on different roles is hard but truth..our vulnerabilities .. it is so great to finally experience hope and success one day but it can be lost in an instant.. fear is powerful.. I feel this director just really captured the truth of addiction and the struggles of being in it and the struggles that occur once sober and the fear s that can arise and bring you right back there... i thank her for writing this and i HIghly recommend!

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jmatrixrenegade

Though I saw the movie not too far from the location of the action, I am not one to judge on the realism of a drug movie. All the same, it had a documentary feel to it as the other comment said, especially the background characters and locations. The lead was excellent. My only problem with it was that the script and some of the acting (the woman who helps her might be based on a real person, but did a real actress play the role? not to be mean, but her performance was a bit amateurish) at times was a bit simplistic and forced.The lead actress, however, made me stay throughout ... a breakout role.

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