Directed by:
Chloé ZhaoScreenplay:
Chloé ZhaoCinematography:
Joshua James RichardsComposer:
Ludovico EinaudiCast:
Frances McDormand, David Strathairn, Linda May, Swankie, Bob Wells, Peter Spears, Cat Clifford, Tay Strathairn, Gay DeForest, Patricia Grier, Angela Reyes (more)VOD (3)
Plots(1)
Following the closure of a gypsum mine in the Nevada town she calls home, Fern (Frances McDormand) packs her van and sets off on the road in this "exquisite film" (Joe Morgenstern). Exploring an unconventional life as a modernday nomad, Fern discovers a resilience and resourcefulness unlike any she's known before. Along the way, she meets other nomads who become mentors in the vast landscape of the American West. From Searchlight Pictures, written for the screen and directed by Chloe Zhao, based on the book by Jessica Bruder, the film also stars David Strathairn and features real-life nomads Linda May, Swankie and Bob Wells. (20th Century Fox Home Entertainment)
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Reviews (10)
A fragile, subtle social drama that resonated with me in a similar way as its indie brother The Florida Project did years ago, which I actually found more distinctive and more interesting. But even so, I had no problem empathising with Fren's nomadic fate and sometimes, in my late fifties, when everything at work pisses me off, I'd pick everything up and move to Kořenov in the Jizera Mountains, in the middle of beautiful nature :o) I really envied her unbridled freedom sometimes, and the nice people around her, you don’t get that in our country. Still, I have a nagging feeling that the Oscar buzz around this film is a testament to how poor last year was cinematically. In other times, in fatter years, Chloé Zhao would have collected awards only at Sundance, but now she can dream of golden baldies in her covid nightmare.
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Oscars, kiss my ass. I honestly don't understand how anyone at the Academy can be surprised that their viewing numbers keep dropping year after year when Best Picture is won by a film that no one in the general public has seen, and which normally would have been snubbed at all the film festivals. Granted, it's an interesting story with interesting people and Frances McDormand, who is perfect for such a role, but it's really sloppily shot. Trying to evoke a sense of being one with nature, a meditative atmosphere, or whatever, by slapping in some (otherwise beautiful) piano music by Einaudi, and stretching out the running time with five-second shots of cactuses, surrounding landscape, sunsets, et cetera? Meh...
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An empathetically constructed carefree romp where everyone can find themselves at different spots. A little melancholic, a little contemplative, lots of thinking about death and the futility of human effort. And even though everything has already been more or less successfully explored in other independent works of self-discovery, Frances McDormand is so down-to-earth and "yours" that you have no defense, and with every solitary sunrise, she pricks your heart a little bit again.
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American Film Academy awards have undergone significant changes in preferences over their long existence, which led to winning Oscars. There were times when Hollywood focused on major dramas about fundamental social issues and then times when studios preferred lavishly produced spectacles with significant commercial potential. Regardless of any trends that spread, the enduring notion of film fans about a winning Oscar film is directed towards an unmissable, visually appealing title that ideally has a societal impact and contains elements of higher culture. Simply put, it should be the film event of the year that can be used as advertising for the film industry and presented as a challenge to visit the movie theater. Nomadland fulfills none of that. I dare say that if Hollywood let a similar type of film win for another two or three years, it would condemn the Oscars competition to insignificance. The problem with the film does not lie in its intimate nature, and only partially in the fact that it lacks a significant plot. A film aimed at evoking empathy cannot function well if it is based on a distant, emotionally inaccessible protagonist who does not want or cannot live in a community, and establish and maintain new social relationships. The fundamental problem with Fern is not the death of her husband or her social poverty (she wasted more than a promising chance to start over), but the character's disposition. If my favorite Frances McDormand was not playing the main role, I would seriously consider giving it only two stars. Overall impression: 55%.
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Do you know that feeling when you watch a movie that is decent in terms of sound, visually beautiful, but indifferent in terms of acting? In addition, during the movie, I reflected on American hobos and realized that while campfire songs are a sign of freedom, relaxation, and comfort for us, in America they are relied upon by the poor classes - nomads - people who couldn't live in harmony with the city and so they flee anywhere where they will be alone. Frances McDormand is typically great, but essentially she didn't have much to play.
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