Cast: Vera Farmiga, Joshua Leonard, Donna Murphy, and John Hawkes
Directed by: Vera Farmiga
Written by: Carolyn S. Briggs and Tim Metcalfe
Genre: Drama

Brought up in a deeply religious community, Corinne (Farmiga) has spent her life struggling with her belief in God. As she grows older, she marries her first boyfriend (Leonard), raises a family, and leads a devout life as a cornerstone of the local church. But her nature to question her faith eventually makes her an outsider, leading her on a spiritual path to discover a higher power within herself.

In Hollywood, religion seems to be a dirty word. It takes great discipline to depict religion without being suspect of a hidden agenda – discipline that Higher Ground doesn’t contain. The script drops “Jesus” as much as Kevin Smith drops F-bombs, and with about as much nuance in its story. From the outset it fails to establish an emotional connection with the character, then proceeds to unfold the story at face value. The lack of subtext results in painfully overt dialogue and character choices. It never quite rises above middle-of-the-road dramatization, often times all too reminiscent of a Lifetime Channel movie of the week.

Higher Ground is sure to alienate a lot of audiences. It’s far too explicit and questioning for Christian audiences (what with a scene of a child playing with cocaine, numerous drawings of penises, and a few F-words), and it’s too rooted in religious beliefs to appeal to more liberal audiences. Vera Farmiga’s directorial debut is admirable in its attempt to tell a story we don’t see enough of, but its ordinary approach fills one with doubt. Even incredibly dedicated performances by talented and underused actors cannot elevate this film above the middle ground.

USA. 109 minutes. Rated R.

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