Leave No Trace

— “Leave No Trace” is a low-key, richly textured, poignant story about an Army veteran and his daughter, devoted to each other and living off the grid outside Portland. They’re not homeless; they’ve just chosen to live in harmony with the forest and there’s a peacefulness and intimacy to their daily existence that is ultimately threatened when they’re discovered by the authorities and taken in for all types of testing and assessment, forcing them to consider their own happiness and stability. Both try to demonstrate that they are adapting, but the daughter’s natural curiosity and newfounded desire to interact with the outside clashes with her father’s need for reclusiveness brought on by some form of PTSD. As she tentatively begins to like life in a society, her father’s need to return to the woods only increases until a resolution must be reached. There’s a tenderness to their relationship that touches viewers' hearts. This is a wonderful film by a remarkably talented filmmaker. The images and issues are still in my mind a day after seeing it and they don’t seem likely to fade quickly.

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[2018. 109 min. Directed by Debra Granik. Starring Thomasin McKenzie and Ben Faster.]
https://www.rogerebert.com/sundance/sundance-2018-leave-no-trace