Dream run for Robbie
Like many other residents of Bismark, Eugene Baker (Finn Cole) thought the land was cursed. Having been lured to Texas’ giant plains by the promise of a new life, his family’s dreams had died, along with their crops. It was all too much for his father, who left Eugene and his mother Olivia (Better Call Saul’s Kerry Condon) when the former was just 5. Scrabbling to survive, they were seemingly saved when she married local lawman George Evans (Travis Fimmel). That was before the town suffered 14 dust storms in one year. Then the banks came for their farms.
‘‘There’s no room for boys in this family any more,’’ George chides his stepson, as he encourages him to find gainful employment, rather than reading (and stealing) comic books.
Others though have taken to more dramatic ways to solve their financial crisis.
Allison Wells (Margot Robbie) has become infamous around the county for robbing banks. Currently on the run and accused of killing a little girl during her and her partner’s most recent escapade, a $10,000 reward has been posted for her capture.
Sensing that this could save their homes and the town, George is determined to track her down. Excited by the adventure, even Eugene is keen to join the hunt.
It is a notion he’s quickly disabused of by his stepdad. Disappointment turns to exhilaration – and fear – however, when he discovers the woman herself, injured and holed up in the family’s barn.
A kind of combination of Bonnie & Clyde, Labor Day and A Perfect World, Miles Joris-Peyrafitte’s (last year’s Chloe Grace Moretz podcast series Gaslight) depression-era drama is definitely a case of style over substance.
Much of Riverdale writer Nicolaas Zwart’s narrative heads in a pretty obvious direction, but that is offset by Joris-Peyrafitte crafting a terrific sense of space and place.
You can almost taste the dust and smell the desperation in every cleverly composed frame (a shower scene is quite brilliantly executed), while haunting imagery, match shots and cross-cutting really draw the viewer into Eugene’s conundrum as to whether he should trust this charismatic potential femme-fatale.
While very different to her more high-profile Harley Quinn, Robbie again toys with, and seems to enjoy, playing a complicated character whose motivations and morality aren’t exactly clear.
She’s certainly a compelling presence, whether it’s protesting her innocence, or persuading her young charge to acquire her a vehicle.
Cole (Peaky Blinders, TV’s Animal Kingdom) is solid too, but some of the other characters feel a little one-dimensional, or underwritten.
Composer Patrick Higgins’ dissonant soundtrack also won’t be for everyone, but as Dreamland builds towards its predictable finale, the visuals and Robbie ensure it’s a ride that’s never dull.
You can almost taste the dust and smell the desperation in every cleverly composed frame.