Day 30
Film: “Mudbound” (2017)
Director: Dee Rees
Writers: Virgil Williams, Dee Rees
Stars: Carey Mulligan, Garrett Hedlund, Jason Clarke, Mary J. Blige, Rob Morgan, Jason Mitchell, Jonathan Banks
Synopsis: When Ronsel (Jason Mitchell) and Jamie (Garrett Hedlund) return to rural Mississippi from WWII, the two must confront the trauma of their wartime experiences and the racism that is seeped into society. Despite the men’s camaraderie and their families sharing a crop, the malicious prejudices woven into the fabric of their Mississippi Delta community comes to a head.
Why I Love This Film: This is a harrowing and deeply disturbing film. But it does highlight the struggles people face when returning home. It tackles the universal experience. The way that men saw the most horrific things - war, genocide, death - and were expected to return home, without support. Trauma was barely discussed or acknowledged. We see how, when not address, trauma becomes an all-consuming and detrimental to one’s well-being.
The film that looks at the contrast between white soldiers returning home and Black soldiers returning home. Garrett Hedlund’s character, while his mental health is not supported, comes home a hero. People will comment his bravery and what he did for his country. Meanwhile, Jason Mitchell’s character returns home as a second-class citizen. He went to war to fight for freedoms, but not his freedoms. He is once again subjected the racism and discrimination he left when he went overseas. Hedlund and Mitchell not only do an excellent job of demonstrating the bond trauma creates amongst people, but also the struggle of returning to societal norms of the time. Especially with Mitchell’s performance, you see someone having to come home to a place that does not care that his life was on the line for his country.
The film also juxtaposes the men’s story with that of Laura (Carey Mulligan), Henry’s wife, and Florence (Mary J. Blige), Ronsel’s mother. The two women forge a bond as they grow to learn that despite what prejudices they hold, they are more the same than different. I think a critical scene that highlights their sameness is when Laura suffers a miscarriage and Florence is the only person able to assist her. Mulligan and Blige are heartbreakingly great together, as they portray these two women with shared experiences that begin to diverge when race comes into play. Blige would go on to receive a Best Supporting Actress nomination for her work, as she should have.
Another Oscar nomination to come from this film was for cinematographer Rachel Morrison. Morrison has been one of the best cinematographer’s of the past few decades. Morrison originally worked in reality television, and that sort of setting gave her an arsenal of tools to film in the most unusual conditions. In “Mudbound,” the film shot on location, in grimy and hot and bug-infested locations, but Morrison knew how to frame every scene to ensure only the grittiness director Dee Rees wanted on camera was captured. Morrison is the first woman to receive an Academy Award nomination for cinematography - Ari Wegner became the second this past year for “The Power of the Dog” (2021). I saw a statistic once that said only about two-percent of films are shot by female cinematographers. It is a shame because there are so many incredible women working - and who would love to get into the field - but the opportunities for them are so slim. Morrison is now venturing into directing herself, but if she ever wanted to be the DP on a film for another director, I hope to see her and Rees work together again. They truly captured magic.
“Mudbound” is an incredible and haunting tale about trauma, prejudice, racism, and the insidiousness of patriotism. On a technical standpoint, this film is outstanding. The conditions of filming and what Rees and Morrison captured is astonishing. On an acting standpoint, this is some of the career best for these actors. The rich and troubling material they were able to work with, the dedication they had for the story, ended up producing some gut-wrenching performances.
Where This Film Can Be Found: Netflix
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