I Don't Feel at Home in this World Anymore (2017)
Crime, Drama, Thriller
Directed By: Macon Blair
Of all the indie movie tropes, I think "ordinary person thrown unexpectedly into an extraordinary situation" might be my favorite. It's one thing to watch Hollywood characters be put into an out-of-this-world situation, it's something else entirely to watch characters who look, feel, and act like real people put into the same scenario. The latest jury prize winner out of this year's Sundance film festival does exactly that, showing us what happens when depression and bad timing clash together in the perfect shit storm of bad luck.
Ruth (Melanie Lynskey) hasn't been doing too good with her ride through life, in fact, she drinks herself through most days of it. That is until she returns home from work to find her home trashed and burglarized. Though the thieves didn't get away with anything too life-shattering, it ignites a fire inside of Ruth that sends her on a crazy manhunt for the assholes who stole her crap and made a mess of her home. It has nothing to do with the stolen goods and everything to do with her crumbling sanity in this shallow, merciless life.
The debut film from writer/director Macon Blair (Blue Ruin) is nihilistic in nature, but with an underlying charm that keeps it from becoming a soul sucking downer. He is able to blend the real and surreal seamlessly and it allows for this story have an authenticity often lost on bigger Hollywood properties. Ruth, and even Elijah Wood's eccentric character Tony, feel like real people which makes the unreal scenario they have found themselves in feel the exact opposite.
The film opens feeling like your typical indie movie, Ruth is depressed and her life sucks, but it quickly dives down a rabbit hole you don't see coming. Having been an actor in each of Jeremy Saulnier's (Green Room) films, Blair has a touch for hyper-violence and taking a queue from Saulnier, he knows how and when to use it most effectively. This is hardly a non-stop action movie, but when it unexpectedly falls down that hole it is never afraid to get graphic.
The violence put on display here is not graphic in a gratuitous way like many movies these days though. When it does occur it is often in a stumbling, almost accidental way that is relatable to real life. We see characters react far more severely to simple acts of violence here than we would see in more stylized movies where they walk away from it without as much as a wince. This goes a long way in setting the tone and getting us on board for the screwball ride he is about to take us on.
Everything in this story lives and dies by its two lead characters, specifically Ruth played fantastically my Melanie Lynskey. She sells misery and mundanity of Ruth and the life she lives incredibly well and her interactions with all of the people around her are authentic. Then there is Elijah Wood's Tony, a character that oddly blends the real and surreal. Im sure we have all met a weird loner like him, who has strange hobbies and a quirky personality, but Wood also adds a level to him that allows the character to break this mold when necessary. He steals every scene he is in and gives what is maybe my favorite performance from him to date.
As a first feature, I Don't Feel at Home in this World Anymore proves that Macon Blair more than knows what he is doing behind the camera. He is able to capture raw humanity just as easily as he gets the brutality of real life violence, and both are on display throughout this movie. The dialogue he has written doesn't at all feel like your typical heightened speech we usually see, instead the characters are holding conversation we could see ourselves having. He lays down the perfect groundwork so that when the finale goes for broke it never seems forced or out of place, it just feels right.
It's easy to see why this movie was the jury prize winner this year at Sundance. It plays with a cache of indie movie tropes and cliches and takes a number of turns you don't expect. It captures the reality we love to see in these kinds of movies, but in a brutal and quirky way we aren't necessarily used to. Blair delivers a tight script that he executed brilliantly, so much so that I am now much more excited about Macon Blair the filmmaker than Macon Blair the wonderful actor. Thanks to the folks at Netflix, this movie is already available on their streaming service to be seen by millions of people, I suggest you take the plunge as soon as possible.
As always, thanks for reading and I am Zach Who Watches Movies. You can find me anytime on twitter @ZachWWMovies, smell ya later!
No comments:
Post a Comment