One of the great, quiet films of 2018 is Leave No Trace, a very emotional father-daughter movie. For any of you who get teared up when watching movies about the bond between a parent and their child, this one may choke you up. Director Debra Granik works through the entire film to build in the audience an understanding of the key relationship, both the positives and the negatives that flow from it.
The film is about Will (Ben Foster) and his daughter, Tom (Thomasin McKenzie), who live in the forest together. For the most part they exist off of what the land has to offer, but they do venture into town to get supplies when needed. To get money, Will would visit the hospital to get his prescribed medicine as a military veteran, and then sell it. Their existence is peaceful and serene, much like the beautiful forest that surrounds them. The tension that looms over them is that of being discovered, and Will works to make sure Tom can hide her tracks and flea if needed. Of course, they do get found and brought back into society. Will is set up with a job, but Ben Foster's face shows that this type of living is painful for him. The temptation to return to the forest never leaves.
One of the really nice elements of this film is the incorporation of the landscape. Our characters are put against a number of backdrops, and Granik does a wonderful job of having them weave directly into their location. We see how where they are affects them mentally and emotionally, and the world around them is always dynamic and working with them to tell the story.
Three times throughout the film, pets are introduced to Tom. The first time it happened, I wondered if Granik was trying to say something. When it happened two more times, it was apparent that she is making a point about both Tom and Will. While it is the father's responsibility to take care of his daughter, the use of the animals shows us that their relationship is not what it should be. Will isn't like a domesticated animal, but one meant to be in the wild, and his handler (Tom) must come to make some major decisions. I could be way off in my interpretation here.
I always knew Ben Foster was talented, but had never heard of Thomasin McKenzie before. This is a young lady who was thrown in a movie with a veteran actor and charged to be the lead. McKenzie was able to show so many different sides and emotions. Her character was written to experience almost all of the feelings a human could go through, and not a single one feels forced. She is a talent that has a great deal of potential, and I am sure she has an incredible future ahead of her.
In a way this is a coming of age story, but the reality of the relationship Tom has with her father makes it deal with very mature themes as well. She is turning into an adult, but I think she eventually realizes that she was already the adult. The emotions that are cultivated throughout the film make it a rich experience, and there is a universal message in here that I believe goes beyond just the parental relationship.
Rating - 3.5 stars out of 4
Children having to be adults and people from a different walk of life seems to be the themes that draw Debra Granik, as her last feature was the terrific 'Winter's Bone.' It also had a young lady in a breakout performance.
ReplyDeleteI am such a fail. I totally forgot that Granik did Winter’s Bone. That was a very memorable picture.
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