PG-13 | 1h 42m | Drama, Romance, Historical Fiction, Fantasy | 2025
A 30-year veteran who has appeared in close to 100 movies, TV shows, and stage productions, Australian native Joel Edgerton is the textbook workingman actor. Held in high regard by his contemporaries, he’s largely unidentifiable with audiences.
The highest profile of Edgerton’s past roles was that of Owen Lars in three “Star Wars” features. As director, the best known of his previous six efforts are the chilling psychological thriller “The Gift” (2015) and the divisive family drama “Boy Erased” (2018).
To date, Edgerton has never been nominated for any major industry accolades, except for Best Actor for the Golden Globe and Critics Choice. With “Train Dreams,” that is likely to change. So far in 2025, Edgerton has won six awards at various mid-level film festivals for his performance in director Clint Bentley’s magnificent, awe-inspiring “Train Dreams.”
Nonlinear Narrative
Presented out of sequence, with infrequent narration from Will Patton, the story spans eight decades in the life of Robert Grainier (Edgerton). Robert is the orphaned child of unidentified parents. At the age of 6, he is sent to what would become Bonners Ferry, Idaho, and adopted by a similarly nonspecific family.With the exception of one scene of a teenage Robert lasting less than a minute, the narrative starts in earnest in the early 1910s when he’s making a hardscrabble living as a logger and sawyer.
Going wherever he can to make $4 a day, Robert is away from Bonners Ferry from (what the movie suggests to be) late spring to late fall. This is never an issue until he meets Gladys (Felicity Jones).
Narrative Shorthand
From this early point forward, Bentley and his “Jockey” cowriter Greg Kwedar provide some superb narrative shorthand. Jettisoning a courtship segment, the writers jump to three months later when the couple, in a manner probably typical of the day, lay out the floor plan of their riverside cabin with white rocks.Within seconds of screen time, Robert is leaving the finished cabin for another harvest. Upon his return, he first meets his infant daughter Katie. Gladys seems to have come to terms with their long periods of separation; she understands they are part of the bigger picture, and the cycle continues.
Just shy of the movie’s halfway point, the couple’s seasonal routine is permanently altered. That is when the story takes on an entirely different, thoroughly unforeseen trajectory. “Train Dreams” now feels like two halves of different movies, but in a most challenging and ultimately rewarding manner.
Macy’s Comic Relief
In the first half, Robert’s closest relationship (besides Gladys) is with frequent coworker Arn Peeples (William H. Macy), a demolitions expert who is not shy when it comes to avoiding work or waxing philosophic. Prone to harmless hyperbole and singing at night, Arn provides all of the movie’s comic relief.The second half finds Robert retiring, or rather, changing professions. Realizing that logging is something more suited to younger men, he chooses to stick closer to home, driving a horse and buggy. He also develops strong friendships with Ignatius Jack (Nathaniel Arcand), who is a local merchant, and Claire (Kerry Condon), an employee of the recently founded U.S. National Park Service.
In Lesser Hands
Bentley’s framing of these half dozen or so very brief, hyper-edited dream sequences are in direct opposition to the otherwise relaxed, ethereal, and ephemeral air of the rest of the movie. In lesser hands, this jagged approach would result in catastrophe. But here, it offers balance to what Robert experiences in his conscious and subconscious existence.For Edgerton, the role of Robert is a culmination of decades-long honing of his craft, and his performance is devastating. Appearing in almost every scene, some of them without a costar or spoken words, he puts on an acting clinic.
In addition to “Oppenheimer” (2023) and “Hamnet,” “Train Dreams” is one of the best movies released this decade.
