DVD of the Week: Look Both Ways

This little gem of an indie dramedy went largely unnoticed when it was released stateside, but it’s one of a trio of outstanding Aussie imports to reach the U.S. this year (along with the Guy Pearce western The Proposition and the Cate Blanchett drug drama Little Fish). Look Both Ways is a surprisingly lighthearted meditation on mortality and peril in everyday life told through the eyes (and the drawings) of a struggling illustrator named Meryl (Justine Clarke) who sees the potential for death in every facet of her troubled life. She meets a sympathetic photographer and the two begin a fragile relationship that undergoes an appreciable amount of stress and turmoil prior to the film’s uplifting finale. Director Sarah Watt demonstrates a skill for subtlety here and magically merges woes of life and death with irresistible charm and whimsy. It’s a beautiful, smart, and good hearted feature that urges people to look forward to the many possibilities of the future instead of merely dwelling on the tragedies of the past.