"Leave No Trace" (2018) is one of the finest films of the year...
and nearly nobody is going to see it. I have now. This is the craft at it's absolute best.
Director and Co-Screenplay Writer Debra Granik has fashioned a story of great depth and resonance. Not by hammering it home. But rather by allowing genuinely moving moments, both quiet and strident, to breathe and take effect. And "Leave No Trace" certainly, and resoundingly, delivers an enduring impact.
Ben Foster is brilliant as War on Terror vet Will, an emotionally wounded soul unable to assimilate back into a society dumping more disappointment and devastation upon him than any man should have to bear. Foster never, ever appears to be acting here. His performance is Oscar worthy, though there is considerable doubt whether he'll even be nominated. Shame on The Academy if this be so.
Young New Zealand actress Thomasin McKenzie is equally superb in her role as Will's dutiful daughter, Tom. She and her dad don't speak all that much. But that doesn't make their communication any less poignant, nor their unusually tight bond not as steadfast as steel forged in fire.
The ending of "Leave No Trace" is a tough one to process. Still, considering all that we've learned about these two remarkable people leading up to this point, it is difficult to imagine one any different.
I review the quietly spectacular drama "AFTERSUN" on my YouTube Channel @ this link:
JOHN SMISTAD, "THE QUICK FLICK CRITIC", reviews the Emotionally Powerful & Oscar Caliber "AFTERSUN"! - YouTube
This post first appeared on The Quick Flick Critic (***LATEST NEW CONTENT Added To "Documentaries" On 6/6/16***), please read the originial post: here
