Salmonberries (1991)
A young orphaned woman, named Kotzebue, is trying to find out who her parents are in the icy landscapes of Alaska. Kotzebue is helped by an east-german librarian, whose husband was killed while fleeing from the GDR. Although both women could not be more different from each other, a fragile relationship forms.
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Salmonberries is a beautiful film that is set in one of the harshest environments on Earth, in Kotzebue, Alaska. The story reveals many deep layers that overlap and entwine, and discovering those layers is powerfully insightful. I know I will never forget the characters of this film: Butch, Roswitha and Kotz. Getting by in such an environment would be incredibly difficult – the wind and the cold being the main factors. People are forced to live closely side-by-side simply for survival. Bingo Chuck represents all that could be wrong or unpleasant in such an environment. Butch represents that all obstacles and unpleasantness can be risen above to find one's own Nirvana, and he does so stunningly. One of the most beautiful films I have ever seen and I am so thankful to the Adlon family for their touching and honest perceptions, their tender ability to see the beautiful and the destructive and to offer it as Salmonberries. And many thanks to Conrad Gonzales.
A sort of mix of 'Bagdad Café' and 'Three Women' set in Alaska. k.d. lang plays an androgynous miner who falls in love with a straight, private, local German librarian. They both have muddy, tragic pasts that slowly emerge. There are some deeply moving moments, and some wonderful slightly magical realist touches. The cinematography is very good. But while lang does a decent job, I can't help thinking a stronger, more experienced actress could have brought out even more in this amazing role. That said, I did enjoy this much more on a second viewing. While it bothered me that it felt at times like Adlon was trying to re-create the magic of 'Bagdad Café' (odd, surreal setting, quirky out of place characters, cinematography that uses color in exaggerated ways for effect, etc.) overall I found myself more able to just let go and accept this tale on its own merits. And doing that, it made me smile.
After clearing away all the acting and plot lines and cinematography and scripts, what I want to see in a movie is something that makes me sit up an take notice. Something that opens my eyes and my mind to some new previously-unperceived reality. Salmonberries does this in a powerful way. Salmonberries transports you to a place where you have never been, to a culture you have never known, and opens the hearts and souls of people you have never known, and lays it bare. See this film.
I'll watch anything with k.d. lang in it, but this movie is remarkable for much more than its star. Every part of the movie is exquisite -- the cinematography is incredible, the acting is intense, the music is powerful, and so on. Each character is beautifully developed as far as necessary for the story. I can't even find further words for this movie. I have seen a lot of movies, and to date there are only two I really believe in. This is one of them.