Rave for Vera Farmiga's Higher Ground

The APs Christy Lemire on Vera Farmiga’s directorial debut – Farmiga also stars:

Vera Farmiga has done something miraculous in her directing debut, “Higher Ground.” She’s managed to make a movie about religion that’s neither preachy nor mocking, and she treats her characters with great decency and respect.

Farmiga extends that courtesy to herself as its star, and her character, Corinne — like the movie itself — seems to be seeking answers with an open heart.

Nice bit of ink for Farmiga’s younger sister (who could be Vera’s twin):

The excellent supporting cast includes the ever-versatile John Hawkes and Donna Murphy as Corinne’s parents, and a vivacious Dagmara Dominczyk as the one free spirit in her otherwise structured, conservative church.

But it’s Farmiga’s younger sister, Taissa, who plays the character as a pregnant newlywed teen, who really stands out. Yes, she looks startlingly like the elder Farmiga and even has some of the same mannerisms and facial expressions. But her performance is also crucial to laying the emotional groundwork for us to want to go down this path with Corinne, wherever it may take us. And we do.

The New Yorker’s Anthony Lane seems to also be supportive of the film, even with Metacritic’s lackluster score:

Near the end of the new film, Corinne, quaking with the doubts that have plagued her throughout, tells members of her congregation, whose conviction she envies, “There is no higher ground.” Does she mean, “The ground does not exist. God is not with us,” or, “No upland could be brighter than the one on which you walk”? One way points to despair, the other to bliss, and Farmiga, as actress and director, is equipped to travel in both directions: down to the pit, or, once more, up in the air.

Reviews so far appear to be mixed.  But the majority has yet to ring in.  Farmiga, though, should be placed in the Best Actress category for her work here.