Higher Ground (2011)

Higher Ground Poster

Vera Farmiga's directorial debut, HIGHER GROUND, depicts the landscape of a tight-knit spiritual community thrown off-kilter when one of their own begins to question her faith. Inspired by screenwriter Carolyn S. Briggs' memoir This Dark World, the film tells the story of a thoughtful woman's struggles with belief, love, and trust - in human relationships as well as in God.

Film Overview
"Higher Ground", directed by acclaimed actress Vera Farmiga, is a 2011 independent remarkable movie based upon the memoir "This Dark World: A Memoir of Salvation Found and Lost" by Carolyn S. Briggs. The screenplay, co-written by Briggs and Tim Metcalfe, takes viewers on an intimate journey through both the highs and lows of faith. The story unfolds in the middle of Farmiga's character, Corinne Walker's, has a hard time and attempts to discover fulfillment in her Christian community, in spite of a growing sensation of detachment and seclusion.

Plot
The movie begins with Corinne as a young girl growing up in the 1960s, dealing with her non-religious parents and observing their stopping working marital relationship. As a teen in the '70s, she gets included with a band's diva, Ethan Miller, played by Joshua Leonard. She becomes pregnant and they decide to wed. After surviving a near-fatal mishap, the couple relies on Christianity, and they begin their journey on what they think is a higher ground.

The story shifts into the '80s, where Corinne and Ethan are now fully emerged in a close-knit Christian neighborhood. Corinne slowly starts to question her faith and the limiting expectations of females within her community, though she truly seeks a profound spiritual experience.

Styles and Performance
"Higher Ground" is a thoughtful examination of religious faith and the great line in between dedication and doubt. The plot navigates the protagonist's personal spiritual journey, the disputes she deals with, her wrestling with her doubts, and her longing for a concrete connection to God.

Vera Farmiga gives a captivating efficiency as her character browses concerns of faith and her place within a strict religious community. Farmiga's directorial launching is notable, with a well balanced representation of faith trials and adversities, making it neither a traditional review nor an endorsement of arranged religion.

Reception
"Higher Ground" was very first presented at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and received vital praise for its sincere, nuanced portrayal of religious faith. Critics lauded Vera Farmiga's directorial launching, applauding her deft handling of a challenging subject matter and her thoughtful, authentic performance.

The film stands as a compassionate, individual exploration of faith that prompts audience introspection, irrespective of their faiths. The movie's determined handling of spiritual neighborhoods typically misinterpreted or misrepresented by media and its complex, human representation of a female in crisis has been hailed as an inspiration for significant, respectful discourse about faith and individual fulfiliment.

In conclusion, "Higher Ground" is a movie that wrestles with the battles of a woman on the mission for spiritual fulfilment and the nerve to question the cloistered norms of her neighborhood. Vera Farmiga deftly deals with the complexities of faith, doubt, and personal growth both on and off the video camera, leading to a movie of notable psychological depth and credibility.

Top Cast

  • Vera Farmiga (small)
    Vera Farmiga
    Corinne Walker
  • Donna Murphy (small)
    Donna Murphy
    Kathleen Walker
  • Dagmara Domi?czyk (small)
    Dagmara Domi?czyk
    Annika
  • John Hawkes (small)
    John Hawkes
    CW Walker
  • Joshua Leonard (small)
    Joshua Leonard
    Ethan Miller
  • Nina Arianda (small)
    Nina Arianda
    Wendy Walker
  • Taissa Farmiga (small)
    Taissa Farmiga
    Teenage Corinne Walker
  • Taylor Schwencke (small)
    Taylor Schwencke
    Young Wendy Walker
  • Boyd Holbrook (small)
    Boyd Holbrook
    Teenage Ethan Miller
  • Norbert Leo Butz (small)
    Norbert Leo Butz
    Pastor Bill
  • Bill Irwin (small)
    Bill Irwin
    Pastor Bud