In this singular exploration of legacy, love, loss, and the enormity of existence, a recently deceased, white-sheeted ghost returns to his suburban home to try to reconnect with his bereft wife.

With the evolution of the horror genre we are headed into more experimental avenues that beg the question; What is horror? With David Lowery’s poetic and somber new film, A Ghost Story, we are faced with looking down into the existential abyss of eternity asking questions like, what happens when we die, how do our loved ones move on, and what happens when all of this is gone?  A film only for the most patient, A Ghost Story revels in its simplicity while expounding on complex ideas.

C (Casey Affleck) and M(Rooney Mara) move into a small home together. They are there for a period of time, making memories and living life, when C dies in a car accident. as M returns home, she is comforted by a neighbors baking, she busies herself with painting the walls, and she works through the grieving process all the while being watched by the invisible ghost of her lost love. As if yanked right out of a Charlie Brown special, this ghost wheres the quintessential white sheet with two eye holes as it shuffles around, watching the living world play out around him.

Certainly not scary, the film is a somber meditation on the march of time. We die, we all move on, we are all forced to exist on some level and to some degree, but what is the point? C’s ghost remains in the home as the love of his life moves out, and another family moves in. Then they move out and a group of younger adults turn the home into a party house.  As time and life move on and the world around him inexorably into the future we are left to ponder the idea of possession and belongings. 

Not a film for everyone, A Ghost Story is an interesting if indulgent mood piece. David Lowery has writen a film that isn’t afraid to ask uncomfortable questions. What happens when we die, and what happens after that, and after that, and after that? Though there are some odd stylistic choices like Andrew Droz Palermo‘s choice to use a 16mm aspect ratio for the entire film. Or the desicion to maks what could have been a great performance from Affleck by covering the character in a cartoonish sheet.

Overall, this is a somber, yet thought-provoking piece of cinema.

A Ghost Story arrives today on Blu-Ray and DVD and