2005, Donal

MARY is by far Ferrara‘s best film, and I predict it will gain huge cult status… it already is if the internet blogs are anything to go by! Unlike his previous films such as BAD LIEUTENANT, Ferrara is interested in birth and beginnings, rather than death. Obviously the birth of Ted’s child, but also the birth of Palesi and Younger as spiritual beings.
The film is absolutely revolutionary in its use of sound and editing. The soundtrack by Francis Kuipers is brilliant, evoking the spirit of the film, before a final sweet release. This is not a listen alone soundtrack such as THE ENGLISH PATIENT, but it brilliantly evokes the threads of Ferrara’s many threads. The editing and dark camera work create an amazing atmosphere. New York is depicted as a near ghost town, with Ted gliding among the lights, or the mixing of news footage during the suicide bomB scene, scored with the screams of a crying infant (the lord ?) is unbearably effective.