This powerfully emotive true story drama from the director of The Dallas Buyers Club – and written by acclaimed British scribe Nick Hornby (About a Boy) – is another award-time gem worthy of your consideration.
Oscar-winner Reese Witherspoon (Walk the Line) puts in an Academy award-nominated performance as Cheryl Strayed – with the movie adapted from her memoirs – a woman on the brink of self-destruction who goes on a 1,100 mile solo hike to ‘find herself’ after the break-up of her marriage (due to her own infidelities) and death of her mother (the also Oscar-nominated Laura ‘Jurassic Park’ Dern).
During her painstaking trek along America’s Pacific Crest Trail (her journey starts in southern California and takes her to the Canadian border) – despite being completely untrained for the journey at hand – sheer determination helps strengthen and heal her as she overcomes several life-changing obstacles.
The flashbacks of her life leave a lot of ambiguity for movie-goers as some aspects of the story are never truly resolved or fleshed-out – but that almost adds to the endearingly visceral emotions that Witherspoon’s interesting lead character exudes.
Throw in some truly stunning scenery across these varying American landscapes and you’ve got a film that can take you to another place for a couple of hours – but some admittedly could get bored by the slow methodical pacing.
Fortunately this road to redemption isn’t as fierce as the title suggests – but is a captivating mini-odyssey that is worth pursuing to reach the destination.
Visit www.showcasecinemas.co.uk for the latest up-to-date showtimes for Peterborough Showcase. You can also join the chat on Twitter @showcasecinemas or on Facebook by searching for ‘Showcase Cinemas UK’.
Gavin Miller
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