Independent cinema, of recent, is often marked by witty millennial musings on love, aging, and nostalgia. Much of these conversations have been written and captured in some way by ‘mumblecore’ alumni like Joe Swanberg, Lynn Shelton and, of course, the Duplass Brothers. The veteran’s leap into television has allowed them the ability to evolve with larger audiences and larger budgets to create some of the most exciting work of their careers. But what happens when their characters grow up? Blue Jay, written by and starring Mark Duplass, may shed some insight on that.
Blue Jay begins when high school sweethearts Jim (Mark Duplass) and Amanda (Sarah Paulson) run into each other at the market in their old mountain hometown. Jim, who has recently quit his construction job, has returned to clean up his family home; Amanda, who is married with two teenage children, has returned to visit her pregnant sister. After catching up over coffee, they spend the day together, rekindling their old friendship.
Director Alex Lehmann pulls a two-hander as director and cinematographer and in both roles, he works quiet magic. The decision to shoot the film in black and white proves to be a warm touch to a film about the comforts and complexities of nostalgia and lost love. It gives Blue Jay the feeling of a dream. Not only does the monochrome work on a narrative level, but it also looks gorgeous – elevating a quaint indie drama into something much more elegant and classic.
It is increasingly exciting to see the Duplass Brothers’ work gaining a melancholic dynamic that a lot of their earlier projects seemed to lack. Blue Jay may be their (well, in this case, it’s mostly Mark Duplass’ show, playing lead and serving as sole screenwriter) most tender work to date. Duplass, himself, is quite remarkable in what may be his finest performance. Sarah Paulson is magnetic as well. Her use of body language elevates the often mundane dialogue. Their chemistry together is what keeps the film alive. While the conversations are never overly-stimulating, the way in which Duplass and Paulson use their eyes, their smiles, and their hands speak leagues. You can see love, longing, and loss louder in their actions than in words, something that not only shows a strong actor acting upon strong direction, but reveals something much more universal than good, quaint conversation.
‘Blue Jay’ is not rated. 80 minutes. Now playing at Sundance Sunset Cinema and on VOD.
