First Hit: A slow paced indie film that has a nice story to tell.
William Hurt is well cast as Brett Hanson, a loner who comes out of prison hoping to connect with his one and only true love May (played by Maria Bello).
Others who are leaving prison at the same time are met by loved ones while Hurt simply looks down a long empty road. Hanson walks into a small town, orders a beer and observes Martine (played by Kristen Stewart) having a disagreement with a young man. It is obvious that the young man took advantage of Martine and doesn’t want anything else to do with her.
He also watches Gordy (played magnificently by Eddie Redmayne), who appears to be a bit odd and goofy, ask a store owner for a disposable camera that has expired film. Martine sees something in Hanson that makes her curious about him. Each of begins to leave the cafe at the same time and they all end up together in Gordy's car heading "south."
None of these people know each other but they are alike in that they are loners, lonely and are viewed as outsiders by others. This connection makes for a slightly uneasy ride in Gordy’s car towards New Orleans. On their trip, the stories of these three start to unfold with Hanson’s being the primary story. They learn how he ended up in prison and about his love for May.
His story is created in flashbacks with him and May learning how to embrace their love for each other. Hurt is perfect as the quiet lonely drifter who “has never made an important decision” in his life.
Bellow is sublime as May; a woman who’s made numerous important bad decisions and whom Hanson says, her "whole life" is in her face. Redmayne is wonderful as Gordy a very quirky, out of the box, kind of guy who follows his own path. Stewart is OK playing, yet another, sort of dark intense young girl who is barely finding her way. Udayan Prasad shoots this film with long slow moving scenes which, at times, takes life out of the film. However, it is clearly sensitive and can bring an emotional response.
Overall: I enjoyed the film; especially seeing Hurt and Bellow in their roles. They both brought strong characters which complemented their respective parts and created an engaging story.