McDormand and Van Life: Nomadland

Nomadland

?Directed by Chloé Zhao?
?Written by Chloé Zhao?

The review:

There are few well-known actors I can think of who could play Fern so convincingly,* and I’m thankful Nomadland’s Fern was Frances McDormand. If you haven’t seen any of Zhao’s films before, you might not think that an ambling narrative about people who live in their vans would be interesting, but you would be wrong.** If you’re looking for a moving story of a woman determined to be on her own, take yourself to wherever this film is playing.***

The verdict: Recommended

Cost: I paid Matt $6.00, he’s paying the monthly Disney+/Hulu subscription fee
Where watched: at home

Consider also watching:

• The Rider
• Songs My Brothers Taught Me
• Leave No Trace

Further sentences:

*Being a woman and an actor in the USA generally means avoiding aging. McDormand has aged along with the rest of us, which makes her very relateable.
**If you’ve seen Zhao’s other films (The Rider or Songs My Brothers Taught Me) you would know she’s a pro at mesmerizing viewers using landscape and the real people’s lives she’s woven a narrative from.
***I remain intensely curious about what Zhao’s Marvel movie will be like.

Questions:

• Who was your favorite van dweller?
• Which of Fern’s jobs would have been the hardest for you?

Favorite IMDB trivia item:

Frances McDormand nicknamed the van used in the film “Vanguard,” which she decorated with her own personal items and slept in during the shoot. Eventually she stopped doing so because “it’s much better for me to pretend to be exhausted than to actually be exhausted,” she told The Hollywood Reporter.

Other reviews of Nomadland:

• Moira Macdonald, Seattle Times
• Dana Stevens, Slate