Wednesday, February 24, 2021

Movie Review Madness - Nomadland

 Showing on Hulu - Nomadland is excellent.  Frances McDormand is a treasure of an actress. Her face is like a Georgia O'Keefe photo.  Strong, intelligent, every emotion passes through her hooded eyes, every wrinkle's been earned.  She's truly fearless, honest, and brave. 

Circa 2011 - Empire Gypsum in Nevada has gone belly up and a whole town/zip code disappears. Fern and husband Beau hung in there as company folk. Beau passes from cancer, and she packs everything into a van and hits the road. She becomes a nomad. 

In different camps, she meets folks/ makes some friends (Linda, Skankie, Dave, and more - very character actors). It's a tough life. Word of mouth tells where jobs are (she does seasonal work at Amazon to make some bigger bucks at Christmas time). Arizona and the desert have a strong RV camp base. Fern stays on the move. Can't commit - she's chasing something.  Visits her sister for a bit, but has to move on. 

This movie captures a life that's certainly for strong individuals. It has moments of sadness, poignancy, hope, and it's filled with American spirit and ingenuity. Frances McDormand gives an Oscar winning performance, in my opinion. 

Wow and whoa. 

8 comments:

  1. She's always been an excellent actress.

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    1. I've been hooked on her ever since Fargo. So funny!

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  2. Wonderful review Joanne, it appears it has every emotion in life. Thanks for sharing.

    Yvonne.

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    1. It was quite gripping. I expected it to be sadder, but it had a strong thread. Such good acting.

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  3. Sounds as though it probably has some nice scenery too. Glad you enjoyed and shared this gem.

    Be well, my friend.

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    1. Um - I've never been a big desert fan so I can't say it was lovely. If I were a nomad, I'd be near a beach!

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  4. Hi Joanne - this sounds an excellent film ... and as you say she is an outstanding actress. Fascinating to join her on that trip ... I'll keep an eye open for it. Great write up thank you - Hilary

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    1. funny - I thought of you as I wrote this and figured it would be right up your alley. Hope it shows up for streaming for you soon

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