Train Dreams

Directed by Clint Bentley, Train Dreams follows Joel Edgerton’s Robert Grainier as he experiences life’s ups and downs during the early 20th century. Filmmaker Bentley, armed with his and Greg Kwedar’s screenplay, delivers a perpetually watchable and frequently enthralling drama that benefits from Edgerton’s mesmerizing, lived-in performance, and there’s little doubt, certainly, that Bentley does a terrific job of similarly populating the narrative with compelling (and impressively memorable) periphery figures – with this especially true of William H. Macy’s spellbinding (and scene-stealing) turn as a garrulous logger. Train Dreams‘ spellbinding atmosphere, which is heightened by Adolpho Veloso’s stunning cinematography and Will Patton’s engrossing narration, ensures that there are few lulls contained within the picture’s well-paced 102 minutes, while the recurring emphasis on Robert’s ongoing exploits, both professional and personal, paves the way for a stirring midsection rife with emotionally-resonant beats and happenings. By the time the note-perfect conclusion rolls around, Train Dreams has cemented its place as a superb adaptation that definitively announces Bentley’s arrival as a major new filmmaking talent.

**** out of ****