Train Dreams Review
Starring: Joel Edgerton, Felicity Jones, Kerry Condon, William H. Macy
Director: Clint Bentley
Star Rating: ★★★★.5
Where to watch: Netflix
Clint Bentley has made one of the best movies of the year in Train Dreams, an adaptation of Dennis Johnson’s best-selling novel. I was reminded more than once of Terrence Malick’s visual grandeur, yet it remains unmistakably original and true to its own medium. Depicting the life of an ordinary worker striving for a better life, the film is rosy and sad in a very honest way. But how much better can he do?
Base
This is the early 20th century American West. We meet Robert Grenier (played by Joel Edgerton), a logger and railroad worker who minds his own business, working the land and helping to build a new world from scratch. Bentley, working here with co-writer Greg Quader, respects the source material by introducing a voiceover that simply observes and narrates what Robert does. When he meets Gladys (an effective turn from Felicity Jones) his life changes forever.
The early scenes between the two are beautifully stitched together (Adolfo Veloso’s cinematography is utterly breathtaking), as they dream of building a cabin and, by extension, living a life together. As the rapid forces of industrialization take shape, he goes out for work for longer hours. Robert and Gladys have a daughter, and this humble abode has become the basis of their existence. He strives to earn more, even as he witnesses casual but horrifying acts of violence at work.
One day, a Chinese laborer is accused of some unknown crime and dies after being thrown from their newly built railway bridge. He returns again and again, and haunts Robert like the shadow of something he cannot get rid of. Is it a curse? All this continues until a terrible tragedy shakes Robert to his core. But that’s just a broad outline of a film that expands into whispers of the beauty and cruelty of the life that exists around it.
what works
Bentley patiently and sympathetically approached the source material, deriving much of its power from meditative scenes and fragments of Robert’s inner life. It is very alive and full of a kind of immense life-force, where the images provide a comprehensive reflection of what is beyond the comprehension of this humble man. He cannot avoid it; He will have to live through it.
The key to unlocking many moments in Train Dreams is through Joel Edgerton’s amazing performance. He’s always very nice, and somehow he’s always underestimated, but as Robert, he delivers this one man’s journey over the years with utmost subtlety and sadness. Not a single note feels false, and the film could have been just as effective had it focused entirely on her face. This is his best performance till date. Train Dreams also features quietly moving supporting turns, notably from Felicity Jones and, especially, William H. Macy, whose presence anchors the film in many ways. Kerry Condon also provides capable support in later scenes.
Train Dreams moves with the beauty and lyricism of a soft pastoral song. This film is not just about America and one man, but about the wisdom and resilience that binds us all. It is a microcosm of a perfect life lived, experiencing many beauties and injustices within time on this earth. Despite everything, life goes on. Robert continues to survive and see another day, and in the film’s excellent final minutes, he finally learns to make peace.