Time: 102 Minutes
Age Rating: M – Adult themes
Cast:
Joel Edgerton as Robert Grainier
Felicity Jones as Gladys Olding Grainier
Kerry Condon as Claire Thompson
William H. Macy as Arn Peeples
Nathaniel Arcand as Ignatius Jack
John Diehl as Billy
Paul Schneider as Apostle Frank
Clifton Collins Jr. as Boomer
Director: Clint Bentley

The main thing I knew about Train Dreams was that it was getting awards attention and starred Joel Edgerton in the lead role, otherwise, I don’t know much about it. So I went in fairly blind and it ended up really surprising me.

I won’t go into too much depth about what happens in this movie, but what I can say is that it’s a character study telling the story about a woodcutter and his life, dreams and losses in an ever changing world.  It’s a very intimate, ground, meditative movie about modernity, fragility of life, and lost time. There is plenty of loneliness, sadness, and melancholy, but it’s also very peaceful. The story took its time and moved at its own quiet and steady pace, I was drawn into its atmosphere and story and was invested from beginning to end. The one aspect I was mixed on was the narration. On one hand, I occasionally liked the vibe of it, but other times I felt it took away from it. Overall, I tolerated the narration, but found it a bit unnecessary.

Joel Edgerton is phenomenal here, giving his best performance. Protagonist Robert Grainier is a very human and grounded character, and in this role, Egerton is excellently soft spoken, sensitive and understated. There are also some really great supporting performances from Felicity Jones, William H. Macy and Kerry Condon. While this is Edgerton’s story, his character comes across plenty of different people who leave strong impressions on him and the story, and are performed really well.

Train Dreams is incredibly directed by Clint Bentley. The cinematography is stunning, the long unbroken shots of wide and beautiful landscapes, forests and nature feel organic, and the intimate close ups work so well. The comparisons to the films of Terrence Mallick are apt, this must’ve been quite a film to watch on the big screen. It’s also accompanied by a haunting and gorgeous score from Bryce Dessner which adds much to the already meditative atmosphere.

Train Dreams is a melancholic, meditative, and beautifully directed historical drama, with a powerful performance from Joel Edgerton.