Junebug

This is a story of family, relationships, and communication. The prodigal son, George, from a small town middle-class family, returns home with his new wife, Madeline, a successful modern woman who owns an art gallery. George and Madeline have journey from Chicago to George's hometown area in North Carolina to look up a new undiscovered artist, Madeline is pursuing to contract for her gallery. Only having been married for 6 months and knowing eachother 1 week before getting married, Madeline learns more of her new perfect husband during this visit. George's young pregnant sister-in-law, Ashley, takes to Madeline immediately, while others keep their distance. George falls back into his ways at home of being alone, leaving Madeline to rely on Ashley's direction. Madeline's different ways shake the set southern ways of the family revealing animosity and As Ashley's pregnancy comes due, the difference in priorities between George and Madeline are revealed. As Phil Morrison, the director, states "the ultimate verity that Junebug clings to is that darkness and light are inseparable. We go to great lengths to deny it in order to feel safe, and are shaken when this denial falls apart. Certainly there's nothing new in this, but I guess that's the point." There are many themes throughout this film, more so than discussed here. I found it to be thought provoking, leaving the theatre with much to ponder.

Off the Map

This is the story of people who live by a means of self sufficiency. That which is very different form societal norms of the day. A family living in the New Mexico desert consisting of a father, suffering from depression named Charley, Arlene, his wife, Bo, their strong-willed eleven year-old daughter, a long time family friend, George, and a newcomer, William Gibbs. The family lives in the desert receiving a meager amount of money from Charley serving in the Vietnam War and barter for anything else they cannot make or mend themselves, using the junk yard as a resource.

The family is dealing with Charley's depression, which takes hold for almost a year during a very impressionable time in Bo's young life. Aiding in this venture is William Gibbs, a newcomer who is sent to audit the family because they have neglected to pay taxes for the past 12 years. After facing a near death experience from an allergic reaction to bee stings, William Gibbs awakes to a new life; a life he has not seen before. He finds himself in love with Arlene, who is appreciative, but does not reciprocate William's feelings. William directs his emotions from Arlene to the new world he has found himself in. Reluctant to return to his job with the IRS, William stays on with the family and pouring his energies in to painting.

As a therapeutic release, the family friend George bought water color paints for Charley; however, it is William who finds comfort in painting. William paints for less than eight years, before his untimely death, in the place he has come to be enraptured in, leaving behind a means for the family to pay off the accrued IRS penalty fees from not paying taxes.

The story is somewhat simple, but beautifully portrayed. An additional character not directly mentioned throughout the film is the environment. The landscape grew to be more than a pretty backdrop, but a mystical character in itself.

This film depicts a way of life often dreamt of but thought to be impossible by today's standards. It is a beautiful representation of the power of love and growth that is possible over time.