A Spell to Ward Off the Darkness

Jason

Two titans of the avant garde cine-dirge bring us a new kind of reservedly ecstatic descent into psychospiritual hinterlands. Having watched films by both, I have often noticed a kinship w/ the Werner Herzog who most consistently finds himself approaching fuzzy horizons where documentary and fiction melt together. I feel like Fata Morgana, especially, is a big influence for both Russell and Rivers. A real trip.

Slow Immersion

It still stands in my top 10 films of all time. Transcendent work, and a masterful collaboration between two of the most interesting auteurs in film today. From the outset in which is most likely my favourite scene in narrative cinema, the shimmering reflections as night becomes, to the beautiful solitude and landscapes, to the lingering camera and beautifully captured BM gig and the faces of the crowd. An experience

Joe Pryweller

Some reviewers have called this an ode to black metal, its trace-link purging and howls of innate pain. This film is much more -- an elemental, innate rejection of the darkness of life's boundaries for the wide screen of nature and the peace found when those trappings are removed. Thee long shots of forests and the awakenings of the spirit world set this apart; the avant garde directors are also rejecting convention.

Zackery

Calm, strange, comforting. even the black metal. semi nihilist, not plot driven, but unique and beautiful. Also has some great music. The opening pieces remind me of Heike Baranowsky

Chiara Marañón

Closest I've been to transforming into a werewolf.

adrianmendizabal

Primal! It builds on sheets of emotional layers. Such a wondrous play of aural and visual dimensions. The black metal scene seems to take you back to the tribal music scene of the past.

inquisita

Had the synopsis been more precise in saying that the man's not just a man, but Robert A.A. Lowe of Lichens and Om fame (Advaitic Songs ♥), I wouldn't have waited a whole aeon to watch it. Nice film, nice music, only tainted by the gnawing feeling that the social security system around these parts is so lousy, one would find it strenuous to swing their life away in a backwoods hippie communa. An incentive for change.

Endless Eye

Hypnotic and engrossing. I had to check out Lichens immediately after watching. You feel like a silent participant throughout the meandering course of events, arriving and disappearing from nowhere.