The Cathedral

“The Cathedral” by Ricky D'Ambrose is a quiet, highly formal family drama that traces the development of the protagonist Jesse Damrosch through fragmentary memories. The result is a meditative, impressionistic account by an only child of the rise and fall of an American family over two decades. The film makes heavy use of static, precisely composed images, giving it the feel of a photo album brought to life. This creates a certain emotional distance. Nevertheless, the deliberately sober aesthetics underscore the themes that are close to the film's heart: fracturing family structures, unspoken conflicts, and growing up in an environment full of latent tensions. A quiet, breathtaking jewel of a film that was as impressive at the Venice Film Festival as it was at the Sundance Film Festival.