The writers, director and actors collectively are so far in their heads with in depth 'intellectualism" and over thinking the story that their heads are up their bums and they can't see the trees for the forest. Unfortunately, this descent into mania will suck out and never return 1 hour and 45 minutes of your lifespan. A time which you will deeply regret. You simply want to write letters to all persons involved in the making of this production to rectify the loss of your time and money spent so poorly on this 'creative' endeavor. You will want to ask "And the point was, what exactly?" It's not even a poignant look at the way people react to death. It had that opportunity, but spoiled it with excessive and random acts of silliness, illogical conversations and odd human pairings.

Emily Dickenson said something about knowing she'd encountered a true poem if it took the top of her head off, or something like that. I know I've encountered a real film, when immediately after the credits have rolled I need to watch it again. M. Blash's "The Wait" is one of those for sure. There was a moment when the sound changed and the image cut to an eerie moon, fire- orange and smoke-black, the clouds moving like a haunting. There was something Kubrick there. And again in the twinning of the blond mother and daughter pair, after a desperate trip to town, which culminated in twin curled coifs. I also loved the primal backdrop of fire, floral light piercing a cave's interior, a herd of horses running, a girl running, a girl dancing. I will put this on the list of my favorite films this year, which also includes Lars Von Trier's "Nymphomaniac" and "Blue is The Warmest Color".

The Wait is the type of independent drama that the critics always love and that I usually hate. I decided to watch it though, because of one very special cast member, who is really coming into his own, Devon Gearhart. Even since I saw this young man in the movie Canvas, I knew he was really something special. Gearhart's unique ability to get the viewers to empathize with whatever character he is playing, gives him a strength that very few actors have. I knew from the description that the character of Ben, in The Wait, was a perfect outlet for him to express this ability and he does not disappoint. As for the rest of the film, it is a dark, eclectic film, full of odd symbolism and strange music, that to be honest is a bit over my head, but it's also a film that most audiences can relate to. The family portrayed, whose last name we never know, is pulling together and preparing for the tragic death of their terminally ill mother. The family is preparing themselves for the worst, that could happen any day, when they come in contact with a psychic. The psychic tells them that their mother is special and destine to come back from the grave, leading the family to not only hold off on making any funeral plans, but the prediction leads them to prepare a welcome home party. As I said the storyline is strange, the film is full of strange symbolism, and it moves rather slowly, but the cast here is unbelievable. Aside from Gearhart's out of this world performance, that will leave even the toughest person in tears, both Chloe Sevigny and Jena Malone are fantastic as the two eldest sisters. The sisters, always at odds are trying to pull themselves together for the inevitable, but are once again drawn apart by the psychic's prediction, leading to a dramatic rift in the storyline. The bottom line is, that The Wait, isn't a film for me, but I can see many people really enjoying it. The story is unique, the performances are terrific, and the future of Hollywood may be on display in this relatively unknown masterpiece.

A talented newcomer on the scene has utilized the language of film to demonstrate a sophisticated and engrossing portrait of a family falling into dysfunction, yet struggling to hold themselves together. Unable to deal with the passing of her mother, a young woman named Emma, hears a voice on the phone telling her to wait, "they will return." Of course, this is something that she interprets as a sign that her mother will return from the dead. Why not? It seems perfectly reasonable. Oddly enough, her sister Angela, incredulous at first, reluctantly goes along with the fantasy. That starts the mystery -- why would two such upper class twits allow themselves to believe in this modern fairy tale? Once you buy the concept, and are willing to suspend your disbelief, you become lulled in by the sumptuous images, the endless wandering through the woods, and odd behavior by otherwise normal people. The cinematography is outstanding for a low-budget project such as this, with stunning shots of a wildfire (apparently it was shot sometime during a massive fire in Oregon), and the shots of the planes flying over, dropping long clouds of pinkish fire retardant are strangely beautiful.Chloe Sevigny as Emma performs exactly as expected, she sells the idea wholeheartedly. Jena Malone, as the sister supposedly with her head together, is less believable, but does manage to convey the baffling contrast between someone who doesn't for a moment believe in the idea of resurrection, yet is willing to give in for the sake of keeping her sister happy. She develops an outside interest in a man-boy named Ben, who has a poet's soul, but who cannot seem to penetrate whatever barriers she has constructed (we never find out exactly why).There are a couple of minor subplots, one of which involves a younger brother and one of the other neighbor boys, but it is given short shrift and then tossed on the back burner, which is a shame, since it would have added some much needed interest outside of the two main characters.There is also some professional work done by a young girl named Lana Green, who has a small but dynamic role as Emma's daughter, and should be a leading actress in another 10 years.Overall, a few plot lines get lost, and some of the lines make no sense whatsoever, but the beautiful shots more than make up for the shortcomings.