Station Agent

I heard the comments, I read the reviews, but actually seeing The Station Agent was even better than I had expected. I watched it in a library--and it was almost a full house for the showing tonight. At the end there was a burst of applause. I watch movies in libraries quite often, but I can't remember the last time I heard applause when the movie was over.

Another movie (Lost in Translation is in this group) which doesn't settle for the oh-too-obvious "fall in love" clichés, and presents supportive friendship as a worthwhile choice. I think that working towards friendship is a tremendous possibility (and never one that you have to regret in the morning)!

The Station Agent is a movie about friendship and disability. I don't mean the obvious, but the the underlying fact that we all have a disability of some shape or fashion and that sometimes draws people together and can make for satisfying friendships when those disabilities are cast aside.

Peter Dinklage is outstanding as Finbar McBride, who inherited a train station and just wanted to hide. Unfortunately, or fortunately, Joe (Bobby Cannavale) is the irritatingly persistent sort that is looking for friendship and cracks the shell that Fin is trying to use to protect himself. They hook up with Olivia (Patricia Clarkson), who is hiding after the death of her son.

The three become friends and help each other through life's difficulties. Three outstanding performances that will have you assessing your relationships in a new light.

So much to say, so little time...

The Station Agent came along and reminded me how movie making should be. Simple, natural, humane. At first, I hesitated to watch it because films about "less fortunate people" tend to get cheesy and try too hard to make you shed a tear. People only praise them because they feel sorry for the main character... but this time you won't get any of that gratuitous sentimentality.

In my opinion, the movie's greatest quality is that it never insists in pointing out the obvious (that life is unfair), instead it shows you the interior journey of the three main characters towards acceptance/understanding of their condition/situation. All made possible by the perfectly natural performances of these wonderful actors. You know what they think and feel without them having to say "deep" things like people in most artsy pictures do. All the magic is in the normal, everyday details, subtle gestures, filmed with a lot of good taste and without the use of cute or overly dramatic elements. The soundtrack fits like a glove with slow, bitter-sweet guitar tunes that feel fresh and create a sensible, warm mood.

Experiencing this film is worth so much more than all the soulless excitement and drama we're usually treated with. I've watched it a lot of times and I appreciated it more and more with each viewing. The characters are more real to me than a lot of fake people I know. I also warmly recommend The Straight Story if you like to walk away from movies with more than you came in.

A story about a man with dwarfism who's hobby is trainspotting doesn't sound like an inspiring tale, but the Station Agent is a remarkable achievement in making it just that. Relocating to a fairly remote area where he has inherited some property, the main character becomes very popular - not because of his cute dwarfism, but because he exhibits an inner strength that enables people to eventually see past his physical deformity. Superb acting by all the cast, and wonderful contrasts between their inner lives and the outer personas they use to deal with the everyday superficialities of the world (including meeting new people). The film is beautiful, uplifting, realistic, without ever becoming cheesy or moralising. A joy to behold.

When his only friend dies, a man born with dwarfism (Peter Dinklage) moves to rural New Jersey to live a life of solitude, only to meet a chatty hot dog vendor (Bobby Cannavale) and a woman dealing with her own personal loss (Patricia Clarkson).

Although I wish Michelle Williams had a bigger role, this is the very idea of everything an independent film should be. Not only funny, but a film that expresses the best parts of humanity.

Peter Travers of Rolling Stone said, "Tom McCarthy has a gift for funny and touching nuances ... The three actors could not be better. Huge feelings are packed into this small, fragile movie. It's something special." I completely agree.