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PARK CITY – A statement repeated successful Max Walker-Silverman’s “Rebuilding,” a world premiere astatine nan 2025 Sundance Film Festival, will instrumentality pinch you agelong aft nan credits roll. It’s elemental but successful nan discourse of this tender play packs a punch, “You sewage what you got.” Considering nan film’s unfortunate and timely taxable matter, it will resonate successful ways Walker-Silverman whitethorn ne'er person imagined.
READ MORE: “Twinless” Review: Dylan O’Brien has nan scope successful this funny and twisty dramedy [Sundance]
A moving rancher successful Colorado’s San Luis Valley, Dusty (Josh O’Connor), has mislaid conscionable astir everything. His family ranch, nan intends of his livelihood, was destroyed successful a wildfire blaze 2 months prior. All he has near is simply a fewer boxes of individual belongings and his riding horse, which is being sheltered astatine a friend’s farm. Having spent clip surviving successful his motortruck and crashing connected couches, he’s yet taken nan connection to unrecorded successful a FEMA-provided trailer till he tin fig retired his adjacent move.
Although embarrassed by his situation, he yet visits his girl Callie-Rose (Lily LaTorre) who lives pinch her mother Ruby (Meghann Fahy) and grandma Bess (Amy Madigan). If Dusty is awkward and possibly a small introverted, nan women successful his life are thing but. His ex-wife pushes him to return Callie-Rose for a fewer hours while Bess lends a sympathetic ear. She and Dusty’s now-passed mother loved to bent retired connected that ranch. The women successful Dusty’s life predominate this movie and for each nan correct reasons.
After bringing her to nan camp, Dusty discovers Callie-Rose needs to complete immoderate schoolwork connected an physics tablet. Dusty doesn’t moreover person a cellphone, fto unsocial wifi, truthful they caput to nan section library. It’s closed, but they time off nan login info connected nan doorway for region residents to use. They’ll return to usage nan net location a mates of times passim nan movie, and they won’t beryllium alone. Walker-Silverman makes judge to see nan pockets of group who besides bent retired successful nan cars and request to usage nan wifi. The group of this vale are resourceful.
There are 5 different trailers astatine nan FEMA camp, each lodging victims of nan aforesaid wildfire Dusty endured. One night, Mila (Kali Reis) coaxes him into joining their impromptu organization for meal 1 night. And arsenic nan days pass, Dusty hears their stories and learns what they person lost. These are low-income residents who are grateful to person their partner aliases kid but small else. These scenes consciousness for illustration an echo of nan lives chronicled successful Chloe Zao’s “Nomadland.” Five years later, it seems truthful small has changed.
Dusty’s successful trouble, though. His finances are failing and he tin hardly past disconnected nan roadwork occupation FEMA recovered him. His past dream is simply a slope indebtedness to rebuild his location and re-seed his farm. He’s rejected not because of his in installments score, but mother nature. The ungraded is truthful burned it whitethorn not turn crops aliases writer again for 8 to 10 years. He whitethorn beryllium forced to caput to Montana, wherever a relative tin usage his thief connected their ranch. That would mean leaving Callie-Rose and perchance not seeing her for months aliases longer.
As a filmmaker, Walker-Silverman’s talents are letting a communicative unfold without pretense aliases melodrama. When nan events are this powerful you don’t request to ratchet up nan stakes. And erstwhile you person actors specified arsenic O’Connor, Fahey (incredible), Reis (best activity of her comparatively short career), LaTorre (you would ne'er judge she’s Australian), and nan ever sublime Madigan, you person an ensemble that tin crushed nan affectional stakes each connected their own.
“Rebuilding” will person a agelong life, but you cannot disregard that it has debuted little than 2 weeks since nan devastating January wildfires successful Los Angeles. That makes each setback Dusty endures sting a spot more. And nan consciousness of nonaccomplishment of generations of memories moreover much heartbreaking. But this communicative will play retired a fewer months from now, a twelvemonth from now and arsenic ambiance alteration intensifies, decades from now. So return it each in, because often, “you sewage what you got.” [B+]
Check retired nan latest reviews from nan 2025 Sundance Film Festival and The Playlist’s complete sum from Park City here.