The suburban black family at the center of Trey Edward Shults’ Waves endures love and loss against a vivid Florida backdrop. COURTESY OF A24
Make no mistake—Waves is a difficult film. Not because it’s boring or because of its 135-minute run time. In fact, the story of a family shattering and then slowly picking up the pieces is intriguing, and it clips along, with the narrative evenly split between the perspectives of two different characters.
Indeed, it’s the emotion of the film—which sometimes verges on melodrama—that makes the moviegoing experience feel like a marathon. This is not inherently good or bad. It’s certainly an excellent reminder that cinema is a medium with the power to completely unsettle us and heighten our emotions when we watch images on-screen. But, like with every marathon, it must be adequately prepared for.
