Get the latest gossip
‘Train Dreams’ Review: A Landmark Homage to the Unsung Workers of the American West Plays Out Across Forests and Joel Edgerton’s Face
Clint Bentley translates Denis Johnson’s novella into a meditative study of America’s Puritan work ethic, starring Joel Edgerton and Felicity Jones.
Channeling “The New World” cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki, DP Adolpho Veloso shoots these scenes at magic hour, selecting moments of simple domestic satisfaction to represent Grainier’s time between backbreaking gigs — idyllic souvenirs that return to him in flashes when he’s away on the job, or years later, looking back. “Train Dreams” depicts that give-and-take dynamic, celebrating those who tamed the west — men whose anonymous, sunburnt mugs appeared in antique photos, no bigger than Lincoln’s head on the face of a penny, staring out from the base of century-old tree trunks. Conversely, by putting a face (and those enormous hands) to the character, plus footage of the places Grainier lived and worked, Bentley’s film accomplishes something the book could not: It brings a visual dimension to this modest monument, creating a record that history somehow missed.
Or read this on Variety
