Wendy et Lucy

Is there no more great frontier? Has time run out on those who look west to a better tomorrow? 'Wendy and Lucy' is a small movie with its scope set on a larger, subtle target. Soft-spoken but very admirable, Kelly Reichardt has crafted a touching story of one girl's endless search for her dog.

On the road to Alaska in search for better economic opportunity, Wendy finds herself in a small Oregon town where its citizens seem to live on the fringe of poverty long after job-providing factories have closed up shop. Keeping track of every penny she spends, Wendy's car suddenly won't start. And after an attempt to shoplift a bit of food sidelines her, she loses track of Lucy. A dog, a companion, and her best friend.

A determined Wendy searches for Lucy in every nook and cranny. Played by a quiet Michelle Williams, this is a subdued performance but a strong one. A portrait of loneliness, of heartbreak. She lives a life far from fortunate, but she holds her head high and looks to Alaska for hope. And in a small neighborhood where her situation seems to only go from bad to worse, Wendy has nobody to rely on but a friendly elderly security guard. Giving her a sense of moral support she probably is in desperate need for, we expect emotion. But staring panic in the face, Wendy remains strong. Her first moment of visible emotional anguish and vulnerability comes after a terrifying encounter in a forest in the middle of the night. A glimpse into her future as a vagabond? 'Wendy and Lucy' comes at a time when our own economy is in a state of perpetual free fall, which helps Reichardt drive her timely message home. It is these often seemingly mundane and unimportant everyday activities that may cause the film to drag, though it comes in at a slim 80 minutes. But it is these events that help the film and Williams find personality. 'Wendy and Lucy' asks us to be strong, to stick with our character. And it offers an ending that will pull at the heartstring of even the most hardened cynic. A tough, very challenging situation you and I would never want to find ourselves in. It speaks of conviction, of doing the right thing even when it's impossibly difficult.

Raw but surprisingly gripping, Reichardt does much with little. It's a touching picture, a bittersweet one. 'Wendy and Lucy' may feel minor, but it's a fine piece of beautifully told cinema. A snapshot that gains more appreciation upon reflection.

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This laconic indie film can put you to sleep in you're not in the right frame of mind. Turn off the phone. Stop checking Facebook. Set aside 1:20 to just concentrate. Lean and simple--but not simplistic--this tells a story that rends any heart still beating, yet it does it quietly, with dignity and without dramatics. Lucy is the key. The cruelty around Wendy is appalling, always doubling down to smash one of life's apparent losers. There's the young creep, lacking a shred of empathy or insight, who blithely declares that if she couldn't afford Lucy, Wendy shouldn't have her.

Yet, ultimately what Wendy does with Lucy is the key to the rest of her life. What will happen to Wendy? No one knows for sure. That's a deliberate ambiguity. If you wanted a clear resolution, you'll have to watch a different film. It takes awhile to get where it is going--something that pierces the heart and creates echoes of calamity as well as growth--but it gets there. Consider the slow pace a journey as well as a destination.

This review is coming from the perspective of a viewer in the exact same situation as Michelle Williams' character. This review will not summarize any key plot points nor try to pretentiously deconstruct the film in the air of a film school thesis, this review will put it to you as truthfully as the film has.

I honestly feel that Wendy and Lucy shines a light on a part of America that is widely ignored; a part of America that's left behind by the faults and actions of The Bush Administration and those who feed off of greed and capitalism. For those who fit within these margins will go see this movie and fail to grasp the understanding of how it is to be desperately broke and have nothing else to hold on to but a few scraps of memories, soiled clothes and your trusted dog to help prevail what's left of you dignity, happiness and sanity. This is not an escapist film, for escapism is for people who can't cope with their own realities. That's why there is so much success in drugs and the media. Wendy should be praised for holding onto her convictions and not falling deeper through escapism. But when your reality is so harsh and greater problems seem to arise everyday, she can't even afford the luxury of escapism as others do, so why should the audience have any exception? Life is very complicated and it can't be wrapped up in a limited amount of time. The open ending reveals to us that nothing is certain, but it certainly must be better than right now. There should be no ending, no "to be continued", only "What now?" "Where to go next?" "What am I gonna do" "Where will I sleep tonight and will it be a safe spot?" If those aren't the questions going through your head as you watch Wendy in the end then you have lived a privileged life and will never have to worry about being thrust into such a situation where you have to give up everything you have left in hopes of things getting better soon.

In a recession, this film should be seen as a lesson of how to live and what to do when comes the moment where you lose everything that's ever meant anything and how to live and restart from there. Of course every decision you make isn't the smartest one, but when you're desperate and have no other choice then you have to do whatever it takes to survive, even if that risks you a day in jail.

We observe Wendy and Lucy from a voyeuristic standpoint. We meet up with them in the park, observe their actions, then watch them leave. For those with a sympathy toward the downtrodden we tend to feel a little sadness, maybe even a little guilt for not being able to help that person out more than we could. But there are also some who have been raised with everything handed to them and with easy opportunities. They look at people like Wendy and Lucy as a stupid bum who can't get it together, without ever realizing that not everyone has it as easy as they did.

I have no idea how to end this review, but I just thought I'd write it as a bit of a rebuttal to all those who have completely missed the point of the main character and her actions which have led the movie to it's conclusion. If you've never truly suffered like the way Michelle Williams' character has then this movie will be lost on you. You may relate more with the clerk in the supermarket. But for those of you who've ever had to live in their car for a stretch clawing onto every dollar for dear life hoping to one day catch a break, then I must warn you that this movie will make you cry. And there's is absolutely no problem with that. I know how it feels, and sometime you just have to let it out in order to go on. Sometime you even have to let go of the things you love the most if you even want things to get better. For some it's impossible to do, but it's just as hard to watch.

As I've said many times in my reviews, I will watch Michelle Williams do just about anything. I think she's one of the greatest actors of all time and certainly of this generation. In one of her earlier starring roles, as the titular Wendy, Williams is able to carry an otherwise very somber movie and bring a sense of relatability and gravitas to the story of a women struggling to stay afloat. Especially for a dog person, this film is particularly difficult to watch, but it also feels essential and timely, even 11 years later.While it may not be a film I check out again, I can once again appreciate the artistry of Kelly Reichardt, as I did with Meek's Cutoff. She remains an essential part of indie-filmmaking.

7.3/10

Greetings again from the darkness. Absolutely stunning performance from the beautiful Michelle Williams, who somehow doesn't look beautiful here and is very believable as the on-the-road loner in search of salvation at a cannery in Alaska. What doesn't work is everything else.

I understand the minimalist approach, but this story doesn't differ much from if you asked a junior high student to write a story about running away from home with her dog. Sure the serpentine belt wouldn't get mentioned, but losing the dog, even if only momentarily, would probably be a sub-plot.

Don't misunderstand. It is a very well shot film and realistic to the point of dread, but we are never really provided any reason to care about Wendy or Lucy ... other than basic human caring.

Will Patton adds a nice, but brief, touch as the auto mechanic and Wally Dalton somehow captured my interest more than Wendy. For the full impact, you have to know that Wally Dalton plays a Walgreens security guard who stares at the parking lot for 12 hours a day.

Michelle Williams deserves the kudos for her performance, but I believe the film itself is much overrated.