Movie Review: Wendy and Lucy.

This film is not for everyone. I'm saying that right off the bat. It's a simple, quiet, and heartfelt movie watching experience which is not found often in today's mainstream big budget films.
Wendy is a morose twenty something, played by the wonderful Michelle Williams, journeying to Alaska. Lucy, is her dog.

When her car breaks down in Oregon, Wendy, like her car, also breaks down. Lucy goes missing, she has hardly any money, no place to stay, nor any contact besides an old, lonely, parking lot security guard.

We see little hints to what Wendy's life is like outside of her car and dog. Little hints of a broken past filled with wrong decisions. And even though there aren't any big events or violence, the film arrests your emotions, and makes you feel for Wendy and her ongoing struggle to get out of Oregon.
Most people would say this film is slow or boring, which is why I say this film is not for everyone. I'm not trying to generalize the public but this film is a quiet independent. And quiet independents are often shunned by the mainstream audience.

It has a wonderful, simple script and it is shot in an understated beauty which does not overwhelm the emotion of this film, but rather take it to a new level.

Now I will say the film WOULD be slow and boring if it weren't for the delicately captivating Michelle Williams, who plays the part of Wendy with a subtle, earnest outlook and a hushed emotional power. You see behind her eyes the back-story of Wendy even though we don't know what it is. I wish that Ms. Williams would become a household name and start getting more widley acknowledged roles. Although, maybe it's for the better for her to stay in the independent circuit, for that's where she truly shines.

If you're in the mood for a short, heartfelt, and somber look at a relationship between human and dog, check this one out. And also don't forget to check out Film Shack, on iTunes, my weekly podcast on film. God I'm a press whore.

Dogs rule.

Martin