Rock Bottom Riser

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Rock Bottom Riser

2021

1h 10m

Documentary

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86%

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7 Reviews

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From the earliest voyagers who navigated by starlight, to present-day astronomers scanning the cosmos for habitable planets, explorers have long made Hawaii the hub for their searching. Today--as lava continues to flow on the island--another crisis mounts as scientists plan to build the world's largest telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii's most sacred and revered mountain. In his dynamic feature debut, Fern Silva examines myriad encounters with an island world at sea. Drawing from subjects as seemingly disparate as the arrival of Christian missionaries and the controversial casting of Dwayne Johnson as King Kamehameha, the film weaves a vital tapestry of post-colonialism and pop culture with cinematic brio and a wry wit. Rock Bottom Riser is an essential document and an exhilarating tour-de-force, a palimpsest that traverses geology, ethnography and astronomy.

Maxwell Rabb

Chicago Reader

03/28/2022

Rock Bottom Riser’s vibrant visuals capture the cosmos, tropical landscapes, and rivers of lava that line the Hawaiian archipelago.

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Concepción de León

New York Times

03/03/2022

Taken as a whole, “Rock Bottom Riser” leaves viewers with a strong sense of how native Hawaiians view themselves and their future, and encourages inquiry into how their land might be preserved.

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Morgan Rojas

Cinemacy

04/27/2022

3/5

An exhilarating and psychedelically explosive cinematic essay and feature debut from filmmaker Fern Silva.

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Diane Carson

KDHX (St. Louis)

04/14/2022

I must conclude that Rock Bottom Riser works best approached as an audio-visual immersion that might prompt further inquiry.

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Dennis Harvey

48 Hills

03/15/2022

Some may resent the fact that its survey is so unpredictable, without an apparent thesis statement. But the sights afforded are often stupendous, not least a final shot of tow-in surfing to die for.

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Paul Attard

In Review Online

06/06/2021

Rock Bottom Riser's biggest issue lies with the half-hearted attempt to shoehorn a haptic political throughline into the truly incredible footage Silva was able to capture

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Synopsis

From the earliest voyagers who navigated by starlight, to present-day astronomers scanning the cosmos for habitable planets, explorers have long made Hawaii the hub for their searching. Today--as lava continues to flow on the island--another crisis mounts as scientists plan to build the world's largest telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii's most sacred and revered mountain. In his dynamic feature debut, Fern Silva examines myriad encounters with an island world at sea. Drawing from subjects as seemingly disparate as the arrival of Christian missionaries and the controversial casting of Dwayne Johnson as King Kamehameha, the film weaves a vital tapestry of post-colonialism and pop culture with cinematic brio and a wry wit. Rock Bottom Riser is an essential document and an exhilarating tour-de-force, a palimpsest that traverses geology, ethnography and astronomy.

Director: Fern Silva
Screenwriter: Fern Silva
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: English
Runtime: 1h 10m