I’m actually seeing this tomorrow morning, it’s Vera Farmiga’s directorial debut, Higher Ground in which Farmiga stars alongside John Hawkes, Donna Murphy, Bill Irwin, Dagmara Dominczyk and Joshua Leonard.
The film is based on Carolyn Briggs’ memoir “This Dark World: A Memoir of Salvation Found and Lost” telling the story of an 18-year-old mother living in a trailer with no plans beyond having more babies-until she found Jesus only to soon give herself over to a radical, apocalyptic New Testament church.
The film is set for an August 26 release through Sony Pictures Classics. You can check out the trailer below along with a much longer version of the synopsis. I also have a gallery of 18 images from the film right here.
Vera Farmiga’s directorial debut, Higher Ground, is a coming-of-age drama in which Farmiga delivers a subtle, nuanced performance completely from the gut, with equally strong and compelling supporting characters. Set against the backdrop of the Sixties, when feminism reached its zenith, the film expertly depicts the landscape of a tight-knit spiritual community. Inspired by the resonant memoir from Carolyn Briggs (who also wrote the screenplay) the film is an exquisite study of one woman’s internal struggle with the primary love relationships in her life. John Hawkes, Donna Murphy, Bill Irwin, Dagmara Dominczyk, and Joshua Leonard round out the cast, along with Farmiga’s younger sister Taissa, who proves herself to be an extraordinary new talent as Young Corinne.
