MEEK'S CUTOFF plays Sunday, 4/17 at Regal Winter Park Village, at 4.30pm, as part of the 20th Annual Florida Film Festival. [details]
By Samir Mathur
If you've seen any of Kelly Reichardt's previous films, you'll have an idea of what to expect here. It's a very slow-moving, atmospheric piece. The opening ten minutes feature very little dialogue, but immerses you in the sights and sounds of Oregon, 1845. The sheer openness of the land looks incredible on a big screen, and all that you can hear is the wind, or footsteps, or birds, and that adds to the effect. Background music is used very sparingly, so the viewer feels a lot more connected to the world being portrayed.
What may surprise Reichardt fans is the ambitiousness and scale of 'Meek's Cutoff'. It's a period piece, obviously, set in the deserts and mountains of Oregon. There are guns and wagons and horses. This is a long way from 'River of Grass' (also playing at the Festival). The story involves three young married couples who are being guided across the wastelands by the the wild-haired, huge-bearded Meek (played by an unrecognisable Bruce Greenwood), to the Valley, where they believe that fortunes await. As they travel for days through hazardous conditions, with their water supply dwindling, they start to question the capability of their guide. "We've come to a terrible place" is a key line from the film, as spoken by Paul Dano's character.
How you feel about 'Meek's Cutoff' will depend on how you feel about Reichardt's films generally. Like her others, I found this to be pretty and poetic and atmospheric to a point, but too low on energy overall to keep me interested for the whole thing. If you are a fan, though, you should absolutely come to this screening, as you may not get another chance to see it on the big screen, where it looks magical.
By Samir MathurContributing writer
If you've seen any of Kelly Reichardt's previous films, you'll have an idea of what to expect here. It's a very slow-moving, atmospheric piece. The opening ten minutes feature very little dialogue, but immerses you in the sights and sounds of Oregon, 1845. The sheer openness of the land looks incredible on a big screen, and all that you can hear is the wind, or footsteps, or birds, and that adds to the effect. Background music is used very sparingly, so the viewer feels a lot more connected to the world being portrayed.
What may surprise Reichardt fans is the ambitiousness and scale of 'Meek's Cutoff'. It's a period piece, obviously, set in the deserts and mountains of Oregon. There are guns and wagons and horses. This is a long way from 'River of Grass' (also playing at the Festival). The story involves three young married couples who are being guided across the wastelands by the the wild-haired, huge-bearded Meek (played by an unrecognisable Bruce Greenwood), to the Valley, where they believe that fortunes await. As they travel for days through hazardous conditions, with their water supply dwindling, they start to question the capability of their guide. "We've come to a terrible place" is a key line from the film, as spoken by Paul Dano's character.
How you feel about 'Meek's Cutoff' will depend on how you feel about Reichardt's films generally. Like her others, I found this to be pretty and poetic and atmospheric to a point, but too low on energy overall to keep me interested for the whole thing. If you are a fan, though, you should absolutely come to this screening, as you may not get another chance to see it on the big screen, where it looks magical.