Leave No Trace (2018) Dir: Debra Granik
- Ridley Coote
- Sep 12
- 2 min read
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One of my favourite genres of independent film is wild or alternative living dramas. I find the topic, and the people involved in it, fascinating. The call of freedom and off the grid life is appealing to many of us, I'm sure, so whenever I get the opportunity to explore more of those feelings, I always try to grab hold of it. This 2018 drama, from filmmaker Debra Granik, looked to be reminiscent of other films I've loved, such as the great 'Into The Wild', which could only be a good sign.
The film had a few beautiful shots dotted throughout its runtime, but the vast majority of it left a little to be desired, at least for me. That's not to say that the film looked bad, not in the slightest, but I would have liked to see a little more of the natural environment, or at least for it to have been done in a more interesting way. Dickon Hinchliffe's soundtrack was fitting, and embraced some of the strong emotions running through the film, but didn't quite capture my imagination the way other soundtracks have.
This reminded me a lot of the wonderful independent film; 'Captain Fantastic' - it explores a lot of the same themes; nature, establishment versus antiestablishment, adaptation, independence, freedom, PTSD, mental health, self-discovery, among other emotionally driven topics. The ongoing prejudice against homeless or wild living people has been going on for a long time, with seemingly more and more anti-homeless strategies and policies arriving each year. It was nice to see a film that challenged some of the notions that governments around the world, particularly in the West, seem intent on pushing.
The story kept its overt nature simple, and left a lot of the heavy lifting to the implicit storytelling and performances of the actors, which was a wise move. I loved that the focus was always on the two protagonists, and the way they experienced the world. The juxtaposition between the insular and open nature of the two characters made for some wonderfully contrasting moments. There were some very powerful scenes throughout the film that struck me a great deal.
I enjoyed the performance of Ben Foster in the role of the father, but there was no denying that Thomasin McKenzie stole the show. Foster showed plenty of nuance, particularly when his character interacted with the more typically-minded people in the film, but I was even more impressed by McKenzie, who was able to evoke all sorts of emotions with just her eyes - often giving her scenes a lot more emotional weight than they otherwise could've had.
Overall, I thought this was a compelling look at members of a rather niche and marginalised community, who live a different lifestyle that a lot of others wished they could. Whilst perhaps not as impactful as other films in this mini-genre of sorts, I still felt that this was a very effective piece of film. I would say it was well worth anyone's time.
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