How many things have you at one time relied upon in your daily life, but have now become obsolete? Things like home telephones, floppy disks, typewriters, and postage stamps have all been replaced with cell phones, thumb drives, laptops and e-mail. George is obsessed with obsolete things. He believes that just because something has been improved upon, doesn’t mean it should be forgotten. So he is compiling his own encyclopedia of obsolete things.
In his endless research for obsolete things, he stumbles upon Sophie, an attractive projectionist at a nearby silent film theater. Even though George thinks that objects should not become obsolete, unfortunately he believes that love is obsolete. Love is a protein, he says. Unfortunately for him, Sophie is a beautiful, care-free woman and requires him to step out of his fact-filled comfort zone. She even gives his encyclopedia project it’s name: Obselidia.
The two embark on a journey to Death Valley to meet an environmentalist who believes that the Earth is dying. On this journey, George and Sophie develop a deep friendship that would lead to romance if it weren’t for an unfortunate fact about Sophie. But as the characters travel to Death Valley, the film falls apart, as if it’s as uncertain about its direction as George is uncertain about his new environment.
The film won the Cinematography Award at Sundance, and rightfully so. It is beautifully shot. Obselidia has a muted color palette that suits the subject matter perfectly. However the film also won the Alfred P. Sloan Feature Film Prize at Sundance, as it was touted before my screening. The film slogs through due to the performance by Michael Piccirilli (Junebug) that’s just as muted as the color palette. The best of Sundance? Hopefully not.
Director: Diane Bell
Notable Cast: Michael Piccirilli, Gaynor Howe
Writer(s): Diane Bell
