NEW YORK FILM FESTIVAL 58 — FILM #5

“stars blow up, and they shoot plasma and atoms out into space. sometimes land on earth. nourish the soil. they become part of you. so, hold out your right hand and look at a star. bc there are atoms from stars that blew up eons ago that landed on this planet, and now they’re in your hand.”

my heart is shattered. 

masterful piece of cinema vérité that’s astounding in every aspect; from its breathtaking visuals to its profound score that only magnifies the beauty of the story at its core, Nomadland is profusely elegant, perfect, and pure in every way.

frances mcdormand has the power to solely carry a film like no other. in spite of how simple her ambiguous soft smile may be, it’s potent enough to shatter my heart.

but, frances’s performance only scratches the surface of heartbreak in juxtaposition to the real people and real lives she encounters. watching this in the midst of our unprecedented times only amplifies the calamitous realities of american life underscored throughout the film. i can only hope the nomads represented in this picture are making it through, and that those who had to depart are doing fine down the road. 

i ache for the day i’ll be able to watch this in a theater again. hopefully that day comes soon. 

“what’s remembered, lives.”

ps: this film’s arguably only flaw were the tattoos of morrissey lyrics. which are probably real and on a real person. tragic.

pss: brave of chloe zhao to claim that eating black licorice is healthier than smoking when u can smoke every day for years and not die, but this week it was found that a man literally died for eating black licorice every day for 2 1/2 weeks. crazy!