Our take
Come See Me in the Good Light takes a somewhat conventional approach in documenting poet Andrea Gibson’s battle against cancer, though that doesn’t mean it’s boring. It works because of the people this documentary follows. It won’t be surprising to hear that Gibson and their partner Megan Falley have the precise words to express this journey– They are poets, after all– but the way each conversation is arranged builds upon each other, easily capturing the context for some of Gibson’s works, as well as how their love transformed the both of them, in spite of all odds. Come See Me in the Good Light does exactly what it says in the title, transforming a familiar battle with illness into an uplifting inspiration of a life well lived.
What it won
Sundance
1 win
The story
In an intimate and joyful story of love in the face of loss, celebrated poets Andrea Gibson and Megan Falley find strength—and unexpected hilarity—in what might be their final year together.
Elsewhere
"Does the vulnerability of its well-chosen subjects remarkable cinematic justice. Through that, White creates a sense of existential wonder and a film bursting with hope for all kinds."
— Alison Foreman
"Their relationship is the film’s earthen quality, the component that provides buoyancy to the memoir."
— Peyton Robinson
The details
The Painter and the Thief
Benjamin Ree
Kurt Vonnegut: Unstuck in Time
Don Argott & Robert B. Weide
The Kingmaker
Lauren Greenfield
Judy Blume Forever
Davina Pardo & Leah Wolchok
Stutz
Jonah Hill
Be Water
Bao Nguyen
Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets
Bill Ross & Bill Ross IV
In the Same Breath
Female director & Nanfu Wang
Who picked it
Isabella Endrinal is a curator at A Good Movie to Watch. She's now free from the corporate night shift. Previous articles have been published in outlets such as NANG Magazine. She's currently catching up on some classic films… if she isn't coping with the fact that the Haikyu anime will end soon.
