Every time I scroll through an actor’s IMDb page, I realize there are a lot of movies I haven’t seen, but I suppose that is the nature of cinema: we try hard and watch all we can, but at the end of the day there will always be a list of films that remain undiscovered, for better or for worse. All this is to say it’s been a hot minute since I’ve seen Jennifer Connelly in something I really enjoyed, but based on the trailer for Claudia Llosa‘s Aloft, which debuted only recently, that could change very soon.
Aloft follows a mother (Jennifer Connelly) and her son (Cillian Murphy), and delves into a past marred by an accident that tears them apart. She becomes a renowned artist and healer, and he grows into his own, a peculiar falconer who bears the marks of her absence. In the present, a young journalist (Mélanie Laurent) brings about an encounter between the two that puts the very meaning of life and art into question, so we may contemplate the possibility of living life to its fullest, despite the uncertainties littering our paths.
To me, the biggest selling points here are the premise — it sounds fascinating, and I’m curious what makes Cillian Murphy’s falconer character so “peculiar” — and Mélanie Laurent, whom I’ve grown quite fond of since I first took note of her in Inglorious Basterds back in 2009. After equally strong roles in Beginners and Enemy, I’m curious to see what she makes of her character here.
Aloft debuted at the 2014 Berlin Film Festival and was picked up by Sony Pictures Classics. It played again at the Sundance Film Festival in January and is screening at the Tribeca Film Festival at the end of the month ahead of a May 22 limited release.
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