Everything Put Together

Variety Said: A riveting, often haunting chronicle of a young mother who's unable to come to terms with the loss of her first-born baby, Everything Put Together is the second feature by Forster, a gifted Swiss-born, American-educated director. Aussie Mitchell, who's rapidly maturing into a terrifically accomplished actress, renders a staggering performance as the young woman whose grief almost drives her to madness. A risk-taking distributor should pick up this tough, demanding picture, which was shot on digital video. --Emanuel Levy

VB Takes a Look: Quietly unnerving in its topic and disarming in its visual style (there's nary a "conventional" shot in the whole film), but not without jabs of subtle satire that lesson the muscle of the subject matter, Everything Put Together looks at the powerful aftermath of an unexpected tragedy--in this case, the death of a baby by Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. Approached with the tone of a "growing dread" horror/suspense film--some scenes will linger in viewers' minds for days. It's a creepy, unique film, expertly crafted by Forster (his latest film is the current Monster's Ball) and a team of three screenwriters. Although the supporting cast is fine if one-dimensional, this is Mitchell's film (she appears in nearly every scene), and her carefully measured performance is simply outstanding. If she isn't getting calls for higher-profile roles based on this film, something is really wrong. Recommend this enthusiastically but with caution, because this is no easy watch. --Cyril Pearl