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The Ballad
of Jack & Rose
a film review by Taryn A. Harris
Director Rebecca Miller's The Ballad
of Jack and Rose is the story of a dying man and his daughter
living a peaceful existence on an island off the East Coast of
the United States (actually the lovely and scenic Prince Edward
Island). Jack Slavin (a wonderful Daniel Day-Lewis) is the man
and Rose (Camilla Belle) is his 16 year old daughter. Jack and
Rose live in near isolation on land that was once a thriving
commune.
Although Jack keeps the outside world at
a distance (except for necessary trips for supplies and the occasional
visits to his girlfriend), the outside world beckons like a siren
to end his idyllic, Utopian vision. A real estate developer,
Marty Rance (Beau Bridges) sees development as progress and hope
for the future, while Jack sees it as a destruction of purity
and a commitment to greed.
One day Jack decides a change is in order
and asks his girlfriend Kathleen (Catherine Keener) and her two
sons to move in with him and Rose. "It's just an experiment."
These are words that soon come back to haunt him.
In this idealistic approach, Jack gets
a wife/caregiver and Rose gets a mother. The sons, Rodney (Ryan
McDonald) and Thaddius (Paul Dano) are as unhappy about the new
arrangement as Rose is, but it is Rose who feels betrayed and
begins to act out. The Brady Bunch it isn't. Jack's "experiment"
is a colossal bust.
Camilla Rose is fantastic in her portrayal
of a teen who loves and worships her father, but disturbingly
also has feelings for him.
The Ballad of Jack & Rose is full of imagery and Biblical metaphor (Eden,
snakes, temptation, sacrifice, exile) and serves as a caution
of sorts. This is what happens when idealism and reality collide.
Jason Lee and Jena Malone also give good
performances.
Music is the other star of this film. It
serves as a soundtrack, but it's also commentary. Both versions
of "I Put A Spell On You" work beautifully to enhance
the drama as do the songs by Bob Dylan.
I highly recommend this film. The acting
is first rate and there's an overall sense of innocence that
I just loved.
As an added bonus, I saw the director herself
right before her Q & A at the Landmark Sunshine Cinemas.
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