Director: Alex Pacheco | Rated: n/a (suggestive themes & nudity) | Review date: 14-Jan-2010

In the world of movies, there are those that aim to entertain and then there are those that are made to provoke thought. Alex Pacheco’s Praxis is certainly the latter. Praxis is a portrait of a young man who’s life is on the verge of a breakdown. Rather than show us typical and predictable situations, Pacheco instead takes a more abstract approach and immerses the viewer into the main character’s mind in a unique and nonlinear fashion.

Tom Macy plays Brian, a lonely writer desperately seeking to find out just who he is. The film constantly jumps between images of Brian attempting to commit suicide, seeking medical help, and even him finding spiritual guidance. Without many words, these images do a great job of showing Brian at the lowest of lows in life, as I’m sure we as humans can relate to from at least one point or another in our lives. The limited dialog and repetitive scenes make this film hard to digest at first. However as the film progresses, things start to come together and the big picture becomes more apparent.

Several references and unpredictable images are presented throughout the film involving those of Greek mythology, celestial bodies, and human sexuality. Visions and memories of a beautiful and mysterious woman constantly haunt Brian’s fragmented persona as well. To me the point of this seemingly random combination of elements is to illuminate the oneness of existence. Brian is constantly trying to take this concept into practice in his own life, along with help from the enlightened Joe (Andrew Roth). On this journey Joe helps Brian begin to slowly open his eyes and discover the larger picture in life.

As the film jumps back and forth between the stray chapters of Brian’s life it starts to resemble more of a painting than a film. There are many metaphors that can be divulged and meanings of different scenes and actions can be endlessly discussed. Budgetary constraints and relatively inexperienced actors aside, this film proved to be a captivating collage of human existence. The artistic editing and minimalist approach help make Praxis less of an entertainment piece and more of a gallery of introspection.

I was thoroughly surprised by this film. The basic synopsis of the film could have easily been made into a more dramatic and mainstream inspiration piece. Instead, the filmmakers stuck to their guns to create a piece of art that was both daring and deliberately ambiguous. In the first moments I wanted to dislike this film as I was expecting a straightforward drama with a more developed screenplay. In the end, however, I can’t help but appreciate a film that strove to be both meaningful and equally unconventional.
Official site | IMDb

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