After watching Ain’t Them Bodies Saints, I have no idea what the title means. Internet research tells me it means nothing. But I do know what the movie is about. Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara play a young couple torn apart after a robbery and subsequent shootout with the police. Affleck’s character goes to jail and Mara is forced to raise their daughter alone. He then escapes from jail to try and be with them. The two Oscar nominees give understated and strong performances for first time director David Lowery in the indie drama that was released to big buzz at the Sundance Film Festival.
Visually, Lowery does well making each shot count with impressive visuals to accompany the classic feeling plot. The simplicity of a jailbreak story to reunite a husband and wife is not anything new, but the emotional themes that confront Mara’s character in particular carry the film. Her main allegiance shifts from her husband to her daughter and that creates some tension filled scenes. Ben Foster, who plays, a cop Mara shot during that initial showdown proves to be a worthy foil for Affleck’s character, well-equipped with a mustache and cowboy hat. The movie does take place in Texas after all.
The story’s pace begins slowly but hits its stride as an engaging character story, well written and tension filled. After seeing Mara’s recent movie choices, this less tortured character suits her acting style very well as a quietly engaged and introspective mother. It’s not like she’s playing a character with a peachy life, but compare it to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Side Effects and this is a cake walk. The film has flown under the general public’s radar to this point, but if it sneaked its way into a few award categories this season, it would be well deserved.
Each film earns either zero, a half or a full arrow in five categories. The categories are Acting, Writing/Directing, Emotion, Innovation and Overall Impression. The arrows are added up to equal the full score.
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