I had the opportunity to see "Trucker" the other day and I loved the flick. The cast did a great job and the look and lighting of the film added to the tone.
Michelle Monaghan plays Diane Ford, a long haul truck driver, who has her carefree and relationship free life style upended when a medical emergency forces her to take in the child she abandoned 11 years before. Peter's father, played by Benjamin Bratt, is sick with cancer and his girlfriend Jenny, played by the great Joey Lauren Adams is stuck with other obligations and has to leave the kid with Diane. Peter, played by Jimmy Bennett, is just as cross as his mother at the situation. The film deals mainly with Diane and Peter reconnecting and the change that happens in both their lives.
Monaghan kills the part of Diane. She walks fast, talks fast, drives fast, and drinks hard. She refuses to let anyone get close to her including her best friend Runner, played by Nathan Fillion.
In the days after Peter shows up you can see Diane struggling with it. It seems to bring back the memories from the time the kid was born and all the baggage she ran out on but she can't run away this time.
Both Diane and Peter feel their away around each other since they don't know one another that well. We do see some sparks of maternal feelings from Diane and the kid begins to soften in his anger toward his mom.
What got me was seeing Diane's raw emotions at times in her eyes. Kudos' to Monaghan for bring that out in the character. And her character arc is not cliché' or predictable in the least. The film kept my interest for the whole 90 minute running time.
I don't get to see to many great female characters in many films but it was great to have the opportunity to see Diane and get a taste of her long journey.
