Review: ORDER MY STEPS at Sedona International Film Festival

Augusta Palmer, a scholar of cinema studies and documentarian (acclaimed for her 2009 feature, The Hand of Fatima, has collaborated with screenwriter Kathryn Grant to produce an emotionally powerful film about repentance and forgiveness, entitled ORDER MY STEPS.

One of the entries in this year’s Sedona International Film Festival, the 19-minute short packs an emotional wallop. Its title derives from a passage from Psalm 119: “Order my steps in thy word, and let not any iniquity have dominion over me.” It echoes a parallel sentiment from Psalm 37, that, although a good person may fall, “he shall not be utterly cast down, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.”

For Peg, a prison inmate who has found faith and become reborn, these biblical words have profound and urgent meaning. After nearly twenty years of estrangement from her daughter, Dorian, whom she abandoned during her days of addiction, she has an opportunity for reconciliation. As Peg nears a parole hearing, Dorian’s visit may offer a key to her early release.

In what amounts to a dramatic and gripping soliloquy of penitence and remorse, Peg speaks through a glass separation; she asks questions about her child’s life. The daughter, unseen for the entire film, offers little comfort; her responses are terse and clipped. The tension is palpable and gut-wrenching.

The overall effect of this film, its emotional gravity, reflects the convergence of three dynamic forces.

There is Palmer’s intelligent use of the camera and laser-focused scrutiny of Peg’s expressions ~ the glances that break eye contact and that juxtapose with flashbacks to her days of trouble; the curled lip of frustration; the intense and wounded gaze of a face worn by hard time.

There is the economy and force of Grant’s writing that flows with what the late Alvin Klein, the New York Times theatre critic, characterized as her “astounding tenderness.”

Then, above all, there is Carla Brandberg’s amazing and emotionally riveting performance as Peg. In this one-woman-show of talent, Brandberg (whose credits include appearances in Orange Is the New Black, Manifest, and The Blacklist) brilliantly conveys the range and depth of Peg’s quest for forgiveness…and, it must be said, for Dorian’s support of her release on parole.

There is an element of suspense too that hovers over this film as one wonders whether Peg’s remorse will be deemed authentic and worthy enough to earn Dorian’s forgiveness.

All told, ORDER MY STEPS, for all of its brevity, is a deeply provocative and inspiring piece of work.

The film will be screened at the Harkins 1 on Wednesday, February 28th at 1:00 p.m. and again at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, March 1st.

Sedona International Film Festival ~ https://sedonafilmfestival.com/ ~ 2030 W. State Route 89A, Suite A-3, Sedona, AZ ~ 928-282-1177

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