At The Movies With…

Lady Beverly Cohn

People deal with grief in myriad ways – from shock or anger to disbelief, guilt, or profound sadness. When we first meet Robin Wright's Edee Holzer, she is in a psychologist's office and seems to be dealing with a great loss.  She doesn't want to be around people and questions her place in the world.  We don't know what happened to her, but clearly, it appears to be an unspeakable event that propels her to make a drastic lifestyle change by dropping out of society. 

A well-educated, successful attorney, Edee buys camping equipment, loads up a U-Haul with provisions, and is guided by a local man named Colt (Brad Leland) to a very remote old family cabin located on an expansive piece of land in the Wyoming Mountains.  (It should be noted, however, that most of the film was shot on location on Canada's Moose Mountain, near Banff National Park.)  The scenery is breathtakingly beautiful and is brilliantly captured by cinematographer Bobby Bukowsky, whose camera measures time as it closes in on the natural look of the changing seasons - both its intrinsic staggering beauty and the inherent lurking dangers.  In another genre, the film could almost be a stand-alone wilderness documentary.  The cabin is cluttered with old discarded junk and piles and piles of debris.  One couldn't help but wonder why Edee would buy this land with the run-down cabin sans heat or electricity and a disgusting outhouse.  One gets the idea pretty early that when she throws her cell phone away and says she doesn't need a car, this woman wants to cut herself off from the world.  Adjusting to this primitive lifestyle takes some doing.  There are scary animal night sounds and an unending daily list of chores, from hauling jugs of water from the nearby stream to sometimes unsuccessful attempts at chopping wood for the pot-belly stove.  Jesse Chatham and Erin Dignam's script takes us through Edee's day-to-day challenges and quietly unveils tiny hints of what is motivating this woman to isolate herself. There is a flashback scene with Edee's sister, who hugs her and pleads, "Please don't hurt herself." Throughout the film's first act, the flashback device is used to depict happy times with her son and a love scene between her and her husband.

The passage of time is established through the changing seasons, from too harsh winters with blinding blizzards to spring and the awakening of dormant tree buds.  Edee is in the outhouse in the dead of winter when a hungry bear approaches, keeping her trapped inside for what seemed like an eternity.  He trashes the cabin, taking most of her provisions, forcing her to hunt for food.  She has a rifle and sets her sights on a deer but misses. She is in a downward spiral and thinks about killing herself but hears her sister's pleading voice in her head.  Without food or water and wounded from a fall, she drifts into unconsciousness.  As she lay almost dying on the frigid wooden floor, she is found by a hunter named Miguel Borras, beautifully played by Demián Bichir and his niece Alawa Crow (Sarah Dawn). This nurse lives and works on a nearby Indigenous reservation.  She and Miguel tend to Edee's wounds and provide food and water.  Alawa assigns her uncle the task of restoring this strange woman's health and eventually teaching her how to hunt so she can always have food.  As Edee's health begins to improve, she becomes more comfortable with Miguel's presence but clarifies that she doesn't want to hear anything about the outside world.   She asks him why he's helping her, and he replies, "You were on my path." This unique, spiritual good Samaritan has pressing issues of his own, but they are not immediately revealed.  It becomes clear, however, that they have more in common than either of them imagined.   As warmer weather sets in, he shows her how to set squirrel traps, teach her how to hunt, skin a deer, and chop wood.  The darkness around Edee continues to lighten up, and they enjoy spending time together hunting and fishing.  A visual of the well-stocked woodshed speaks volumes about her progress. Miguel is a warm, loving man with a heart of gold, and one almost expects a romance to blossom, but it does not, which makes their friendship even more poignant.  The narrative slowly unravels, revealing what happened to each of their families, and eventually discloses more about Miguel and his awaiting, surprising destiny.   Satisfied that Edee can now take care of herself, he visits her and asks if she could take care of his dog, to which she agrees. "When will you return?"  "I'm not sure."

Wright's first attempt at directing is worthy of attention. Wearing two hats can be challenging, but, in this instance, the director's hat worked very well, as did her acting hat, as she achieved a masterful portrayal of Edee. Especially considering the first third of the film has little or no dialogue and is a one-hander morphing into a two-hander with the most charming Miguel's arrival. There are some narrative flaws, especially the outcome, which strained credibility and seemed like an ending was contrived for the sake of, well, an end.   

Distributor: FOCUS Features

Release Date:  Current  

Where: In Select Virtual Theatres & VOD 

Language:  English

Genre:  Drama

Running Time:  88 Minutes

Rating:  PG-13