Had I realized that this was a Netflix movie, I wouldn't have seen it in a theater. But I'm kinda glad I did, partly because I supported my favorite local theater and partly because a large screen and loud speakers enhance the dramatic experience. We don't usually think about that for mere dramas.
Despite copious narration by Will Patton, I had to look up the Denis Johnson novella to tell when the story begins: the 1910s. It ends in 1968, and I'm not sure how many decades in between are represented. In any case, Robert Grainier (Joel Edgerton) works first as a railroad builder, then as a lumberjack, and eventually as a carriage driver, all in rural Idaho. In trying to make ends meet, he doesn't get to spend as much time with wife Gladys (Felicity Jones) and cute young daughter Kate as they'd all like. And he sees far more deaths than he'd like.
The title pertains to an early trauma, when a bunch of White railroad laborers kill a Chinese co-worker. Robert objects and interferes but expects bad karma for not trying harder to prevent it. (Only the book explains why they were angry, and it better conveys why Robert feels so guilty.) The Chinese man appears not only in his nightmares but in his waking imagination, staring blankly at him from a few feet away.
That may be the most longstanding haunting factor, but it's hardly the worst in Robert's life. My genre savvy let me see the signs early on that the Grainier family, for all their love, would not stick together. I won't say exactly what happens, but Robert doesn't even get the chance to mourn properly. Good thing he meets some random dogs.
The direction is pretty effective, between cinematography and sound. Both music and silence add to intensity. Some moments look unrealistic, as when a rifle has zero recoil, but that could reflect Robert's faulty perception in flashbacks or dreams. He certainly has trouble keeping them straight.
Some viewers complain about the slow pacing. I don't. It's never long before the next interesting moment. And 102 minutes is pretty short.
The audience at my theater lightly applauded, and I was among the first to join in. TD will probably win at least one Oscar, just not the highest.
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