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Northfork 2003 |
Review by Jonathan Cornwell |
Directed by Michael Polish
PG-13, 94 min. (brief sexuality) |
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Starring: James Woods, Mark Polish, Nick Nolte, Duel Farnes, Daryl Hannah, Ben Foster, Anthony Edwards, Robin Sachs, Peter Coyote
Producers: Mark Polish, Michael Polish
Screenplay: Mark Polish, Michael Polish
Cinematography: M. David Mullen
Distributor: Paramount Classics
Released: 7.11.03 (Limited) |
Rating:
 (out of ) |
The Polish brothers' third film, Northfork, may be their most ambitious film yet; certainly the most mysterious and
strangest concoction of their vivid imagination, but also a hallucinatory ode to the transition between life and death. Set
in 1955 Montana, the film evokes the ghost town-like past of towns abandoned by the illusion of riches in the Western
frontier. Rich in metaphorical imagery, Northfork will frustrate many viewers while enchanting the rest. Yet once
the dreamy landscape and quirky characters merge to create a blurred line between reality vs. fantasy, the intriguing themes
of a complex film come to life as a counterpoint to the dreary, near black-and-white cinematography, which is among the best
of the year. Director Mark Polish successfully blends the ambiguously rendered set pieces with a storyline that is more about
thoughts and feelings than it is a standard plotline, which in this case is more rewarding anyway.
In their first two films, Twin Falls Idaho and Jackpot, Mark and Michael Polish also explored the human
condition via the onset of death and the promise of a better tomorrow. In Northfork, they have seemingly found the
balance they've been searching for; the three films are seen by most as a trilogy taken together. This final installment
is bleak and at times mundane in a surreal way, but the elegiac undertones of the visual prowess on display here is enough
to pique the interest of viewers who are more interested in meaningful cinema than a throwaway popcorn flick.
The town of Northfork is about to be the victim of a new dam nearby; Evacuation Teams are sent into the surrounding
community to convince (sometimes forcefully) the citizens to leave the premises before being flooded out. The two-man
teams, led by Walter O'Brien (James Woods), confront the remaining stubborn, which include a man and his two wives who
reside in an ark-house (a la Noah awaiting the flood), a man who nails his feet into his front porch, and another couple
who simply refuse to leave. Meanwhile, a local priest, Father Harlan (Nick Nolte), cares for a dying orphan boy, Irwin (Duel Farnes),
who replaces his abandoned foster parents with a group of imaginary (or are they?) angels - Flower Hercules (Daryl Hannah),
Cup of Tea (Robin Sachs), Happy (Anthony Edwards), and Cod (Ben Foster). They are searching for the "unknown angel,"
which of course Irwin quickly espouses to be him, complete with scars to prove he was once a young angel, shot down by
marauding hunters.
The Polish brothers present their allegorical images with wide open, vast long shots of the Western landscape, evoking the
emptiness and loneliness that haunts those who remember better times in Northfork's distant past. The washed out colors
and damp, cold atmosphere render a stark commentary on the isolated spirit of those left in the dust of technological advances.
There are several long, quiet scenes of guarded contemplation that seem to communicate the sad, pondering attitude
of the film's characters.
The filmmakers' work is compared to the dark comedy of the Coen brothers or even the psychological weirdness of
David Lynch, and it's easy to see why. Northfork straddles three interlocking storylines with a sense of verisimilitude despite
the brooding, confusing narrative. It's also obvious that actors enjoy working with the Polish brothers, as evidenced by
the presence of top-shelf talent. Together, the cast and filmmakers create emotionally-connected characters amidst the
abstract confines of the script.
Admittedly, Northfork is a love it/hate it proposition for most; those who are willing to endure the demanding
allure of the film's complexity will find it fascinating, while others will either fall asleep or be as hopelessly lost as some
of the characters in Northfork itself. For me, the exquisite imagery and mournful introspection of accepting the circle
of life is enough to make it one of the more intriguing films of the year.
© 2003 Jonathan Cornwell
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 |
 | Masterpiece - Film perfection |
 | Excellent - A Must See |
| Good - Highly Recommended |
| Fair - Worth seeing |
| Average - Viewable, but not recommended |
| Below average - View at own risk |
| Poor - Avoid at all costs |
| Very poor - An embarassment to the film industry |
| Zero | Awful - One of the worst films ever made |
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