The American frontier in the early years of the twentieth century provides the setting for this earthy and contemplative historical drama/meditation, as it tells the life story of an ordinary logger and railroad worker, Grainier, as he works hard to build and maintain his family and to survive the harsh conditions of the era. The opening shots set the scene of the powerful, still beauty of nature juxtaposed with man's incursion, with the men working hard and a reflection on life in its immediate and universal scopes, all of which runs through this quiet, thoughtful and powerful film. The gentle narration offers poignant humour and preceptive observations of people and the environment, with the film capturing the importance and beautiful simplicity of the simple, the mundane and an awareness of the natural world around us, with Grainier's idyllic self-built lakeshore home and his wife and child at the centre of everything in his life and a mid-point disaster testing the man to his limits. Joel Edgerton gives a wonderfully grizzled and understated strength throughout in his powerful performance, with Felicity Jones as his wife showing genuine warmth and stoicism. Timeless themes of permanence and loss, regeneration and the power of love are woven through this captivating tale, with beautiful camerawork, composition, editing and music, making Train Dreams a steady, gorgeous and profoundly moving piece of work.
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