Train Dreams - Review 

Rating: 4 out of 5

THE spirit of Terence Malick looms large over Clint Bentley’s superb Train Dreams, a profoundly moving meditation on life and nature that is as life-affirming as it is heart-breaking.

Adapted from the 2011 novella by Denis Johnson, and co-written by Bentley with Greg Kwedar, the story bears comparison to the reflective, contemplative style of The Tree of Life and The Thin Red Line, yet somehow also feels more accessible and relevant.

Man’s relationship with nature, as well as to his own mortality, is thoughtfully explored, offering plenty to say about the fragile nature of both life itself and the ecosystems that support it.

That’s not to say it’s preachy. Rather, the associations are made via the observations of the many people who populate the story, drawing on their years of experience of working in and around nature (often destroying it in the pursuit of progress).

Joel Edgerton heads the cast as an introverted logger named Robert Grainier, who forms part of an exploited, constantly moving labour force in the early 20th century who cleared woodland wildernesses (often just using axes and saws), built bridges and made way for the American railroad.

An orphan, Grainier accepts life’s hardships and proves a diligent and reliable worker, often keeping his inter struggles to himself. But his life is transformed by the arrival of Gladys (Felicity Jones) into his life, a beautiful woman he subsequently marries.

The two share a daughter and build an idyllic home in the woods - but lament the time they are forced to spend apart as Robert has to leave for long periods of time to support them.

Then tragedy strikes…

In and around this, Robert attempts to navigate and make sense of both his life and surroundings. He interacts with fellow weatherbeaten men, who impart their own wisdom - sometimes he observes violence, which unsettles him.

Most notable among these is William H Macy’s reflective old-timer Arn, an explosives ‘expert’, who perhaps delivers the single most beautiful line of the film. But there’s also Paul Schneider’s religious Apostle Frank, another logger whose fate will sit with Robert throughout the movie.

Bentley allows each co-worker to shine even with limited screen time, while imbuing their existence with an uncertainty befitting the precarious nature of life. The men and women, like the trees, can be felled at any time.. sometimes by fellow men, oftentimes by nature.

Train Dreams can provide a stark reminder of nature’s power and its ability to turn in an instant; similarly showcasing man’s insatiable appetite for destruction as the railways take hold across America (a metaphor for the greater intrusion of civilisation on the natural world).

Later on, as Robert ventures increasingly into the city, he becomes increasingly at odds with progress and his place in it.

Edgerton delivers a wonderfully complex, but quiet, performance: a man driven by equal parts melancholy and wonder, who displays an indefatigable ability to keep going no matter what the world holds in store for him.

His dignity imbues the film with tremendous heart, offering joy in his successes and comic moments, but genuine heartbreak when that tragedy strikes. A final sequence, in which Robert allows himself to observe the Earth from the air, feels fitting and bittersweet.

But then Train Dreams doesn’t merely exist to show life’s challenges. It’s a live letter to endurance and to nature, filled with beautiful cinematography that - in true Malick style - possesses an elegiac, hypnotic quality.

It’s a profound experience; but one that undoubtedly inspires and invites quiet reflection for some time afterwards. It’s a stunning achievement.

Certificate: 12A

Running time: 1hr 42mins