their ways home. In a shared road trip across the country, they bond
over a love for folk music, and the kindness of strangers.
Director
– Dave Heinz Starring Joe Purdy, Amber Rubarth
Why I
Liked The Film – Folk music, a story about a journey, and warm,
genuine characters.
When you start with “There are these
two folk singers…” I’m hooked from the first moment. I grew up
listening to folk music, I love it to this day. Every time I make
another stab at learning to play guitar, it’s so I can play folk
music. So without a doubt, this movie would be on my “To See”
list.
At the same time, I didn’t have high expectations.
It’s a subject that doesn’t inspire a lot of movies. Some
documentaries, plus “A Mighty Wind” and that’s about it. So I’m
grateful for anything I get.
And what I got was
wonderful.
The two leads are veteran folk singers. Their
lack of acting “polish” made their story feel more real. Amber
Rubarth and Joe Purdy have years of performing experience that brings
a level of emotion and style to their music rarely caught on
film.
Joni (Rubarth) has to get home to care for her
mother, while Elliott (Purdy) has a gig with a band he’s not sure
he wants to do. In fact, he’s not sure he wants to play at all. His
music has become a job, rather than a joy. A friend of Joni’s mom
offers them an old band tour van to drive back after the skies are
closed following the terrorist attack. They don’t know what to
expect or if the van will make the trip. But what choice do they
have?
What you get is a wonderful story that winds through
overheating engines, strange hermits in the desert, a love story (not
theirs), the kindness of strangers, and some amazing music.
Along
the way, I fell in love with this movie. It’s what I call a “little
movie”, small budget, character-driven. But it’s sooo good! It’s
a story about music, life transitions, doing what you love,
remembering what you love, the lengthy process of being comfortable
with who you are.
(Confession time – writing this review
has taken twice as long as usual. Because Rubarth and Purdy are the
soundtrack for the writing session. And I keep stopping to listen to
them. And now I want to watch the movie again.)
I want to
watch this movie again. What more do I need to say?
Rating
– **** Recommended
Stories Are My Life 
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