Where the Crawdads Sing (2022) — Read Along
Beautiful telling of a melancholic tale
16th September 2022
Occasionally, even a cynical yet golden hearted misanthrope such as your humble narrator will be persuaded by the power of advertising, promotional movie posters and if I’m truly honest, an intriguing and unique film title. For months now, my local cinema has displayed two film posters prominently and seemingly constantly. The first, “Men” (directed by Alex Garland) is highly, highly recommended as I’d been tempted by the holy grail of title, film poster and director, as Garland is fast becoming the go to director for off kilter futuristic, dystopian horror. Obviously “Where The Crawdads Sing” merited a casting eye on its title alone, there are better and more intriguing promotional posters than I could find for the headline image of my Youtube channel reading below and without any trailers or reviews (big fan of David Strathairn so that became a big plus), I was suckered again and, like “Men”, I’m rather pleased to be such an easy sell sometimes!
Directed by Olivia Newman in only her second full length cinematic offering and based on the phenomenally successful book of the same name, “Where The Crawdads Sing” is many things: a courtroom drama of a bird that cannot be caged, a free spirit in a mean spirited world, the ultimate outsider in a supposedly inclusive society where bullies and racists prosper. It’s melancholic, reflective, triumphant, rustic, natural, earthy and whilst it doesn’t entirely all hang together and the ending seemed rushed, I highly recommend this to you as there’s a really genuine feel to a film that’s brilliantly wrapped together by the director (huge praise for Polly Morgan’s cinematography too) and seamlessly blended together with some stellar acting portrayals.
“Kya Clark” (Daisy Edgar-Jones) Also known as “Catherine” or as the horribly derogatory “Marsh Girl”, as the film spans roughly a sixteen year period from 1953 through to 1969, special plaudits and huge congratulations should immediately go to Jojo Regina who as the youngest incarnation of Kya is absolutely magnificent and likely to break your heart. Edgar-Jones grabs the later period Kya with real aplomb as she continues to live alone within the marshes and swamplands and the family home she’s run since a child. Reclusive and unobtrusive, Kya still digs for “grits” with the only outside world interaction being the selling of these to the local storekeepers “Jumping” (Sterling Macer jr) and “Mabel” (Michael Hyatt). The so called real world intrudes upon Kya as she allows “Tate Walker” (Taylor John Smith) into both her life and her heart but the small town real world simply won’t allow this loner renegade into their dubious affections.
When there’s a suspicious death in the marshes, there’s only one chief suspect and Kya is guilty until proven innocent.
Huge plaudits are richly deserved for each and every one of the above named as well as one portrayal omitted for spoiler reasons and above all perhaps, to the magnificent David Strathairn who handles the modern courtroom drama as “Tom Milton” with a self assuredness and empathy, especially apparent when alone with Kya and away from the maelstrom of the courtroom circus.
I loved the layers of the film as it slowly developed the back story to the real life story so well hidden within the writing, direction and Daisy Edger-Jones’ performance.
I loved the obvious desires for freedom and to be free, for autonomy rather than regulation, for love rather than recriminations and to pursue a life’s passion because it’s exactly that, a passion.
I loved the quiet elegiac music from Mychael Danna.
The sunshine kiss scene!
The dancing and kissing amid the blowing leaves scene!
The snow geese scene!
As you can see I rather liked “Where The Crawdads Sing” and I’ve yet to mention my admiration for the balancing of the melancholia with the freedom of the human spirit and that this film is ultimately a coming of age drama wrapped in abandonment, grief, loss, loneliness, physical abuse and violence and of living in fear when the utmost desire is to live in peace, at one with nature and in one’s own personal safe haven.
“Sometimes I feel so invisible, I wonder if I’m here at all”.
I still haven’t read any other reviews of this film, I might well now read the book, and I heartily recommend this to you.
"The Essential Film Reviews Collection" Vol.7
Please see link above for the 7th and final volume in my “Essential Film Reviews Collection” and below, my pride and joy of traditional paperback and hardback books all available via Amazon.
Thanks for reading. I hope this message in a bottle in The Matrix finds you well, prospering, and the right way up in an upside down world.