Nomandland

          Directed by Chole Zhao (who also wrote the screenplay) this is a glimpse into a fabric of American life, unfortunately becoming far too common in today's world. Through the eyes of Fern, a fictitious character played beautifully by Frances McDormand, we meet real nomads, displaced people carving out a life on the fringes of society. 

           Sometime after Fern's husband dies and she loses her job when the plant in her town goes bust, Fern packs her meager belongings into a van and hits the open road.  The film has a very loose narrative as it weaves its way across the American west following Fern as she moves state to state and job to job meeting various people and hearing their stories. She becomes friends with Linda May and another woman named Swankie. They share time together as their lives crisscross on the open road. Both women play a fictitious version of themselves but their lives and stories are real.

          The only other "actor" in the film is David Strathaim, playing a nomad who shares a minor mutual attraction with Fern. Both actors blend so easily into the landscape, the film feels more like a documentary than a scripted feature. Ms. Zhao's shoots the film in an unassuming and gentle way, letting the people and the landscapes fill in the narrative. The cinematography by Joshua James Richards is just wonderful. Close-ups on faces and still life appear like paintings come to life, lingering both on taut skin and beautiful scenery.

 

           In a film like this nothing really happens and yet everything does. These people may have been forced into their circumstances but they have learned to adapt to a new way of surviving the harsh realities of today's America. It is a tribute to their tenacity and quiet dignity.