Never seen internet age portrayed this intriguing and gentle. Almereyda succeeds where Wenders has been failing over and over again with his mushy, pretentious films about human disconnections in a world saturated in technology. Amelia (Liane Balaban) comes down to New Orleans to look for clues in the disappearance of her computer obsessed sister (Shalom Harlow). With the help of her cousin Bill (Clearance Williams III), she attempts at tracking down down her sister's videochat correspondent, a philosophizing cowboy named Eddie Mars (alternatedly played by Karl Geary and David Arquette). Almereyda diddles with ideas like avatars, youtube and internet relationships playfully, using Fisher-Price b&w camera and other medium and laid-back philosophizing. Watching this, I feel like everyone (including me) has been paying too much attention on negative aspects of the internet. Yes we might not know our mysterious friends that well. Yes the universe is larger than we are and may crush us, but sharing ideas and exchanging thoughts are what counts. Let us be happy here and now.
