Wendy et Lucy

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.

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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The true triumph of this film is its ability to say so much about the cold, cruel reality of just how close some people are to breaking their banks and their hearts.

What fascinates me is: there are a few big budget films out there right now - all scrambling desperately to capture the same themes as W&L - that have no concept of how real people really act and survive. Those filmmakers must be pulling their hair out screaming "how can she say it all with one woman and a dog, and I can't say a damned thing with all these great special effects???"

That is the joy in this film. The simple, honest, brutal truth of now. Enjoy.

WOW, that is easily the most depressing film I saw this year, hands down. Michelle Williams and Lucy the Dog star as Wendy and Lucy, respectively, in this remarkably affecting drama about a poor, independent woman escaping from her undisclosed troubles and making her way to Alaska with her dog. All the two have in life is each other, money is tight, food is hard to come by, and sleeping in the car is the only option for Wendy. A devastating turn of events happens to Wendy, and Lucy subsequently goes missing, leading Wendy on a mission to recover the only companion she has in her life. Along the way, Wendy encounters indifferent individuals whose actions are driven by self-righteous attitudes, but Wendy also finds help in an unlikely place, a compassionate security guard. In many ways, Wendy and Lucy succeeds in areas where Bolt (2008) came up short, but they both approach their themes in very different ways. Wendy and Lucy is absolutely heartbreaking, forcing me to cry out "NO!" twice in its duration. The ending was an absolute shocker to me, and actually squeezed a few tears out of my eyes.

In this film, Lucy becomes a character in her own right, a brilliantly effective choice. Lucy becomes not just a symbol of everything Wendy loves in this world, but her only hope for survival. It is never specified, but the audience member is allowed to create an entire backstory behind these main characters. I like to believe that Lucy is a childhood pet of Wendy's, who helped Wendy through a difficult childhood, perhaps with abusive parents, in a foster home, whatever you would like to believe. It makes Wendy's situation that much more affecting. If you've ever felt like you have but one object in this world to turn to in times of trouble, and you've felt like escaping from chains that are holding you down, and beginning a new life for yourself someplace new. If you've ever felt so cut off from other individuals in this world, like screaming at the top of your lungs. If you've ever been placed in such a desperate situation, where your livelihood is threatened, and all that you love seems as though it is vanishing before you, you will undoubtedly shed a tear at this incredibly powerful drama about the connections humans make, the friendships we forge, and the sacrifices we must sometimes make.

9/10

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.