Memoria is a confounding movie. We know that it comes with a fine pedigree. We understand that this is meant to be higher art than the average movie experience, and yet… The story opens as Jessica (Tilda Swinton) is awakened by a startling noise in the wee hours of the morning. It’s a noise that repeats every so often, yet no one else seems to hear it. This leads Jessica on a quest to find the source of the noise and solve the mystery behind it. Celebrated writer-director Apichatpong Weerasethakul certainly creates a stunning film to look at that is elegantly produced and at times haunting. But its stagnant pace will repel all but the most determined or esoteric viewers.

Jessica is traveling in Columbia when the aural anomaly occurs. Later that day she visits her sister Agnes (Jeanne Balibar) in the hospital and meets a friend for lunch at the university. She brings up the noise in conversation. She is directed to visit a young man by the name of Herán (Juan Pablo Urrego) who works in the college audio department. Jessica shares her experience with Herán and the two attempt to recreate the noise she heard and perhaps identify it. Wandering through the halls of the university, Jessica also comes across the Archeology department that is sorting through the unearthed skeletal remains of a recent construction site. Later, Jessica is at dinner when the noise again returns. Still, no one else seems to hear it. After exhausting all possibilities, including a visit to the doctor, Jessica is compelled to follow the noise to its apparent source deep in the jungle countryside of Columbia.

Weerasethakul‘s approach to storytelling here is to build a detailed world and to let the audience absorb it. Sayombhu Mukdeeprom‘s pristine cinematography captures a love of architecture as well as a fondness for the chaos of nature. Sound designer Akritchalerm Kalayanamitr and sound mixer Raúl Locatelli compliment the visuals with a textured soundscape of impressive depth. But this doesn’t always make for compelling viewing.

Weerasethakul seems perfectly content sitting the camera in one spot and allowing things to happen in front of it. Long takes capture seemingly mundane stretches of passive dialogue and at times nothing at all. There is a scene in which Swinton’s character asks another to lay down and go to sleep. The person complies and we watch as the person lies down, falls asleep for a few minutes, then wakes up again. No, I am not kidding. The technique invites the viewer to immerse themselves in the world on screen and as a result, become a part of it. This may be fine for the art-house crowd, or students of film, but for the casual viewer, it is one tedious slog.

For her part, Swinton again is mesmerizing. She is seriously one of the more committed actors of our time if not one of the most versatile. Weerasethakul‘s direction is unquestionably masterful and endlessly artistic to be sure. That is to be recognized and admired. However, Memoria plays like a short film stretched far beyond its interest. This is not your average film, but it is mildly rewarding if you are patient.

5/10