I struggled a bit with the stylized storytelling in Annie St-Pierre’s “Your Higher Self,” a documentary with a fiction-like vibe that serves up a deeply philosophical meditation on the modern obsession with life coaching and self improvement. This isn’t just a story of reaching personal goals and finding success, but one about the relentless quest of finding meaning and purpose in your life.
Through the lens of over a dozen life coaching sessions, St-Pierre presents an intimate portrait of a booming profession. Keeping herself (and the audience) at a comfortable distance, she also exposes the subtle absurdities of an industry that thrives on the very human desire to make yourself the best person you can be.
Personal growth has now become a marketable commodity rather than an organic, new age journey. This isn’t just something for your hippie neighbor, but a process that the corporate world is taking to heart.
The documentary’s style takes an artistic approach, with deliberate pacing and framing that creates an overall sense of detachment. I felt like a distant observer, and thankfully St-Pierre approaches her subjects with empathy. This is not a film that ridicules its subjects, but one that gently points out the contradictions and emotional toll that such programs can take on average, everyday people. It’s critical but compassionate.
That being said, I found the film a chore to sit through. It’s simply too long and runs out of steam, mostly because many of the featured sessions are far from compelling. If you are a person who doesn’t buy into a system that capitalizes on self-doubt and profits from insecurities, you will find the documentary even less relatable.
But with personal growth and life coaching services gaining in popularity, it’s clear this is an industry that isn’t going away any time soon. “Your Higher Self” attempts to convey how it feels to live with the pressure of insecurities by following those who are constantly feeding a need not only for validation, but to always be improving.
By: Louisa Moore
Screen Zealots 