A Ghost Story 2017 * * Stars

Director: David Lowery
Year: 2017
Rated R
Rating: * * Stars
Cast: Casey Affleck, Rooney Mara

Remember when Casey Affleck appeared in 2002's Gerry? I do. I enjoyed that film despite the fact that certain scenes went on incessantly. A Ghost Story (my latest review) also stars Affleck. It too has extending wide shots and parlays over ninety minutes that could've just equaled an hour.

Now did I like "Story" as much as Gerry? Not really. Despite a decent musical score and a wholly original template, A Ghost Story felt a little pretentious and a little too symbolic for my taste. With "Story", the camera peers in on every frame, there's some pseudo creepiness, and there's plenty of uncomfortable silences. A Ghost Story has slight shades of Terrence Malick and at the same time, gives off the whiff of being akin to an independent version of 1990's Ghost (starring Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore).

Anyway, "Story" is filmed mostly at a real house outside of Irving, Texas. Said house could easily come off as the pic's unequivocal star. Shot on a screen resembling the outline of a small pool table, A Ghost Story isn't conventionally scary but is indeed about ghostly figures. There are a couple of them. They are dressed in white capes with eye holes cut out.

Casey Affleck plays up apparition as an anonymous character. He's a husband who dies in a car accident and comes out of death as Casper for a new generation. He tries in afterlife fashion to connect with his grieving wife. Then, he lies dormant as his other half moves to a different town (Affleck's sweetie is yet another anonymous persona played by Bedford, NY native, Rooney Mara).

In conclusion, "Story" is directed with soared ambition by David Lowery (Pete's Dragon, Ain't Them Bodies Saints). Lowery has tailored intentions but fails to give his audience an emotional connection to his troupers (we barely get to know anything about them except that they binge-eat homemade pies and then throw up). He also robs his flick of having a sustained level of entertainment value.

Bottom line: A Ghost Story might make one hit the fast forward button on their DVD remote. It perturbs giving you every painstaking sequence from an extensive distance. Call it tricked "storytelling" that's announced as overthought, spoon-fed art. Rating: 2 stars.

Written by Jesse Burleson