Trucker

Diane Ford (Michelle Monaghan) is an independent long haul trucker. She lives alone and has one night stands. Runner (Nathan Fillion) is her married drinking buddy. Her ex-husband Len Bonner (Benjamin Bratt) is in the hospital with cancer. His girlfriend Jenny Bell drops off Diane's son Peter (Jimmy Bennett) for three weeks. Both are estranged from each other. With schedules to keep, Diane has to take Peter on the road.

It's a small indie with Monaghan doing her some of her best acting. It's an unrelenting role. She does a good job although it's not so terrific that it elevates the movie into the stratosphere. The story is a meandering trip of personal growth to find her maternal side. Her tough outer shell has no easy answers. It's a solid indie.

I had the esteemed pleasure of attending the New York Premiere of first-time director James Mottern's film Trucker starring Michelle Monaghan. To make even more pleasurable was sitting next to James' father and having him tell me how he paid for his ticket to support his son. I share this for a realization of what James' family conveyed and how closely related it is to his film; a working class family never forgetting where they came from.

Trucker tells the story of Diane Ford (Monaghan), a young female, independent truck driver living life effortlessly and freely. All seems going to plan or lack there of until her estranged son (Jimmy Bennett) is dropped off on her doorstep due to his father's recent diagnosis of cancer. It is this time where we find Diane's world is turned upside down. Responsibility and the maternal instinct, two important things that have laid dormant in Diane's mind for sometime are swiftly reactivated. Along with this new found purpose, all the other elements that have inhabited her life for ten years are rattled; her awkward relationship with her friend Runner (Nathan Fillion), her ailing ex Leonard (Benjamin Bratt), and his new love in his life Jenny (Joey Lauren Adams).

What Mottern succeeds in his narrative his a brave and sensible character study of a woman who has withdrew herself from "real" human emotion. Not as profound as Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler from 2008, but perhaps a simpler tale, one that doesn't require too much of the viewer. For a good chunk of the picture the young Jimmy Bennett does some marvelous work, perhaps the best child performance of the year thus far. Unfortunately Mottern's writing of the young Peter is often stale and unnatural, giving him far too much credit for an eleven year old boy. Though I can admire the work considerably, what I loved about it, I ultimately turned on somewhere within the 90 minute running time.

Michelle Monaghan on the other hand gives her most personal and powerful performance of her career. Her dedication to Diane is some of the finest work displayed on screen this year and is surely to be in serious consideration for an Oscar nomination. Monaghan devotes her mind and heart into one of the most unlikable characters and demands our respect and attention, something not easily attained by an actor. Her screen chemistry with Jimmy Bennett is some of the most natural and beautiful scenes seen in quite sometime, despite it being filled anger and acrimony.

Despite Monaghan being the best chances of the film to garner awards consideration this season, the unsung hero is Nathan Fillion who gives the most tender and heart warming supporting turn of the year thus far. As I'm sure I might be in the minority for the praise of this actor, I feel inclined to give a superb performance its proper due. I admire it greatly.

Other strong aspects of the picture lie in the cinematography of Lawrence Sher is should find himself with an Independent Spirit Award mention this year as well.

The film is definitely worth a watch and as it may not fit well with everyone, you have to admire the attempt nonetheless. Michelle Monaghan and Nathan Fillion give some of the best works of the year and it's always great to see the birth of a writer/director like James Mottern and where he could go in his career. Trucker is definitely worth the watch.

***/****

Q1: Is Michelle Monaghan the ultimate woman? (Only men need answer, or try to). The question is asked seriously, and, you will shortly learn, lies at the heart of this venture, in its DNA, if you will. Monaghan's roles usually lean in that direction. In Mission Impossible, she was Tom Cruise' only vulnerability, and to rescue/avenge her he was willing to risk a world war. In Source Code, Jake Gyllenhaal was willing to bend the very fabric of Space and Time just to be with her; in Made of Honor Patrick Dempsey not only was willing to let go of his swinging bachelor life but almost invaded Scotland to win her; and in Shane Black's KISS KISS BANG BANG she was the ultimate prize, the lost love from your childhood that Robert Downey was granted one final chance at. Against this backdrop, we start to see where this film came from. Either Monaghan or her agent (pick one) was getting concerned over this trend and decided to put her in a "real" part, cast against type, to show that she can play more than one role.

Q2: Does the film work? Yes and no. Yes Michelle can act, and all the players do a fine job of playing parts so gritty you can practically smell the perspiration. Nathan Fillion strays outside his comfort zone – which is TV – and does a nice job. Benjamin Bratt, a generally under-deployed resource, steals every scene he is in. Which is not too hard, because the script and director keep everything on a low boil for pretty much the entire time.

Q3. Does Monaghan's character have Aspbergers? This was not an issue when the film was made, but with the benefit of hindsight, this would explain a lot. If you think so, tell your friends on the Aspie boards.

Q4. Do we really care if Monaghan's body of work will be remembered as skewing to the same role over and over? The real secret of TRUCKER, a fine little film in its own right, is that Monaghan was (and arguably still is) brilliant at playing the "coveted heroine" role and, if it ain't broke, you probably shouldn't try to fix it. In this context, TRUCKER becomes less an indie drama and more a guilty pleasure for Monaghan's legion of fans. Male fans,we should add. But you already guessed that.

What embodies the lonely, self-dependent person than the trucker? Hours upon hours of driving with nothing but some music and one's own thoughts. We've seen this protagonist before, just not in the form of the beautiful Diane (Michelle Monaghan) cussing and driving a truck. The opening scene with Diane getting a quick sexual fix, pulling out a cigarette and hitting the road without saying more than a word or two is not exactly original character development, but James Mottern's debut film hits a notably real chord in all its silence and familiarity.

When Diane gets stuck with Peter, an 11-year-old boy who as it turns out is the son she abandoned an infancy, suddenly "Trucker" has the workings of an "unlikely pair go on a road trip comedy." Fortunately, that tired concept of two people who don't like each forming a bond pretty much ends after the first third of the film and everything becomes much more real. After all, Diane is watching Peter because his dad, her ex-husband, is dying of colon cancer -- not your typical circumstance. And rather than Diane and Peter slowly reconnecting as mother and son throughout, there are much more ups and downs.

Occasionally "Trucker" will dip into cliché, namely in its handling of mother-son dialogue. Peter is a smart kid with real kid issues of wanting to be loved and showing it by provoking adults, but a couple times Mottern has him drift into the kid who says something intelligent and revealing about the older character who is frozen by the comment and considers it in a lingering camera shot at the end of the scene. Mottern keeps the film quiet and subtle for so much of it and these techniques put little cracks into his vision.

But Mottern must be thankful for this strong core cast. Monaghan excels in her first dramatic starring role. Diane is not the most complicated of characters to solve, but Monaghan keeps her from ever becoming an open book. Her lone wolf speak-your-mind mentality is much more at odds with the small kernel of her that wants to make meaningful connections with the people who have suddenly become close to her. The young Jimmy Bennett also impresses as Peter, having a lot more scenes requiring self-awareness and meaningful discussion that most child actors. Nathan Fillion, who plays Diane's friend Runner also works his charms and Benjamin Bratt as the dying father earns our sympathy quickly despite his minimal screen time.

"Trucker" could have done with half the number of driving in a truck to contemplative indie music transition sequences, but that's just the kind of film it is. It has that timeless, expected story line of two people who slowly forge a relationship they didn't think they wanted but both need, yet some unpredictable moments and solid performances throughout that keep its message fresh a create genuine sympathy for its characters.

~Steven C

Visit my site at http://moviemusereviews.com

I was able to see this film at the Austin Film Festival 2008. Saw it twice actually, since Natnan Fillion's number one fan wasn't able to go the night I had it on my calendar. Despite problems with the script (didn't always ring true) and definitely with the dialogue (again, problems with truth, and reality), Nathan, Michelle, and Jimmy give fine performances. Dialogue weakness, I would guess, would be a tough thing for an actor to overcome, but Nathan sails through it with flying colors. I would have liked to have asked the director why he chose sepia tones for some of the scenes - they simply didn't fit with the message/action on screen. I'd ask, but he'd probably not answer, like in the Q&A at the Sunday evening screening. (What, me bitter? No.) If I had to guess, I'd say that the director makes some rookie errors since this was his first narrative; and, it appears he was more interested in being an "artiste" rather than telling the audience a story. Overall though, I enjoyed the picture, particularly Nathan Fillion, Michelle Monaghan and Jimmy Bennett.