Critics reviews

As is perhaps appropriate, given the comic occupations of the Reynolds (and the Elliott) family, this unusual, unsettling and terrific little film presents itself not as a domestic opera, but as a family comedy.

One of the strangest films I’ve seen this year, Clara’s Ghost is a twisted, slippery little whisper of a thing that refuses to let itself be easily defined.

Ledare stages this experiment with savvy, and anticipates that his subjects will soon begin to question his role. When eventually they do, The Task leaps from mere social study to a profound interrogation of what we expect from artists, and of what we want from art.

The actress Bridey Elliot (Fort Tilden, Silicon Valley) has found the perfect role for her dry, dark but goofy sensibility. . . . Like many indie film directors, Bridey used to work at Kim’s Video, where she obsessively watched old movies. That deep film knowledge is all over Clara’s Ghost, which deftly combines comedy with horror and mystery.

Kudos to Elliott and DP Markus Mentzer for aspiring higher than the usual comedy mode of locking down the camera at a few unexceptional angles, then cutting for coverage on the best improv take; there’s zooms to spare and nicely burnished interior nighttime light.