It took Anna 10 years to recover from the death of her husband, Sean, but now she's on the verge of marrying her boyfriend, Joseph, and finally moving on. However, on the night of her engagement party, a young boy named Sean turns up, saying he is her dead husband reincarnated. At first she ignores the child, but his knowledge of her former husband's life is uncanny, leading her to believe that he might be telling the truth.
Rated 3.0 / 5 from 1 log on Katalog
The only thing noteworthy I want to say is that Nicole Kidman changed how I see cinema. I became a huge fan as a young teenager after I saw Moulin Rouge, but in the aftermath of her divorce from Tom Cruise (and now arguably throughout her long career), Kidman made a string of random small budget films that made me see her differently than other performers. I’m also thinking about films like Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus. I didn’t like Birth when I fished it out of a bargain bin in 2008 and watched it at the age of 14, and I only liked it a little more at the age of 32 watching its release by the Criterion Collection. The film presents a fascinating portrait of grief in an insane scenario of reincarnation, but despite its performances, gorgeous photography, and beautiful score, it ultimately failed to live up to its premise for me as it slowly fell victim to its own absurdity. Back to Kidman, on the other hand, who taught me to appreciate actors who are brave enough to take on challenging roles that frame them outside of the many in Hollywood who arguably play it safe for their entire careers. Birth is worth a look, but it isn’t a movie for everyone. It certainly would’ve fallen completely flat for me if it wasn’t for Kidman’s layered and daring performance.
