In his first feature, self-taught filmmaker Jonathan Caouette has crafted 19 years' worth of home movies, video diaries and answering machine messages into a bracing autobiographical fever dream. Layering soundtrack and visuals in an intricate collage of rich emotional texture, he displays an exhilarating talent. "Tarnation," which was a hit at Sundance and Cannes and recently won the Los Angeles Film Festival's top docu prize, should connect with adventurous filmgoers when Wellspring releases it in October.

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