TRAIN DREAMS

The omniscient narrator to this film makes it clear early on that we're going to be taking in the whole of the life of logger Robert Grainier, although most of the focus is on the period immediately following his marriage to Gladys, towards the end of World War I, when Robert is in his early thirties.

We see Robert and Gladys build a cabin in the wilderness by a brook, and start a family with daughter Katie.  It's an idyllic life, beautifully portrayed, except that Robert has to leave them for long periods to earn a living.

Tragedy strikes when Gladys and Katie die in a fire (although their bodies are never found) and Robert never really gets over his grief.  

He struggles to adjust to changes to the logging industry and so later on he makes a living transporting people and freight with a horse and cart.

Robert is an unsophisticated soul who doesn't have a lot to say, and his life is ordinary and undramatic in many ways.  In this respect it reminded me of the novel 'Stoner' by John Williams which focuses in exquisite detail on the life of an insignificant person.

Another obvious comparison, in terms of the film's meditative and visual quality, is with the films of Terrence Malick, and indeed the 'The Next Picture Show' podcast paired it with 'Days of Heaven'.

A film it also reminded me of is 'Jeremiah Johnson' which is also about a solitary man who discovers love only for tragedy to strike.  In both cases the film is enlivened by various figures who briefly cross the path of the central character.

In this case the main such person is a veteran logger, beautifully played by William H Macy.

But in fact all the acting on view is flawless, as is the direction and cinematography.  

Joel Edgerton is perfect in a difficult role, and the scene where he finally articulates his feelings of grief is very moving.

Felicity Jones plays Gladys.  Going back twenty-odd years she played a role on the long running radio series 'The Archers' which I used to listen to, so I took an interest in her career when she moved into the world of film.  She made an immediate impact in 'The Theory of Everything' but since then I've not seen her in anything much so I was pleased to see her deliver such a fine performance in this exquisite film.