The Chronology of Water: Kristen Stewart’s directorial debut gets an intense trailer
Heading into the Cannes Film Festival, one of the most eagerly awaited films was Kristen Stewart’s directorial debut, The Chronology of Water. Ever since the end of the Twilight franchise, Stewart has carved an interesting path, working largely with auteurs like Olivier Assayas, Rose Glass, David Cronenberg, and Pablo Larraín. While audiences in North America may remember her more from her mainstream work, in many parts of Europe she’s widely acclaimed as an arthouse actress, even becoming the first American actress to ever win the César Award in France for Clouds of Sils Maria. As such, it wasn’t a surprise when her directorial debut found a home at the Cannes Film Festival, and now her film is hitting American theaters.
The film is adapted from the memoir of the same name by Lidia Yuknavitch, who is played in the film by Imogen Poots. It tracks her abusive childhood and her career as a competitive swimmer, which was curtailed by problems with drugs—although she was able to completely reinvent herself as an author and teacher in Portland, Oregon. Early reviews raved about Poots’ performance, although the film is reportedly quite grim and intense. From the trailer, Stewart’s European influences seem obvious, and the film is said to be uncompromising. Perhaps that’s why Stewart ended up partnering with a smaller indie outfit, The Forge, which is giving the film an awards-qualifying run in December before hopefully going wider in January.
It should be noted that Stewart has been outspoken about her struggles to get the film made, but it seems the finished project was worth the effort, earning a six-and-a-half-minute standing ovation at Cannes. It looks like an intriguing movie, with Stewart opting to shoot it on 16mm film (a very cool choice) and peppering it with some unique casting choices, including James Belushi as author Ken Kesey (author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest), who was one of Yuknavitch’s college instructors.
I must admit, I’ve enjoyed watching Stewart’s career evolve over the years, with her seeming passionate about arthouse cinema on the big screen in a way that’s unique from her contemporaries. I’ll definitely be checking this out.
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