Blue Car
In Blue Car, Agnes Bruckner plays Meg, a sensitive young high school girl who seems to excel in writing. And while the words on her page are calm, the world around her most certainly is not. Her father left the family many years ago, and her mother is self-involved and more than a little bit selfish. Her mom isn’t Joan Crawford, but her behavior is questionable at best.
And then there’s her sister Lily, probably the most seriously disturbed little girl this side of the Exorcist. She says creepy things that instantly make you question her sanity. Naturally, a girl who goes on hunger strikes and cuts herself, would be bound to cause some stress in anyone’s life. Again, the power of this character is her complete plausibility. We don’t see any crazy yelling when Meg discovers what her sister is doing to herself, nor do we get any long, drawn out Lifetime-style interventions. It’s like real life – where things are forgotten and ignored until they bubble to the surface.
In all this madness around her, Meg turns to her English teacher, Mr. Auster. At first glance (and actually through most of the film), Auster appears to be the kind of teacher that, well, inspires movies and awards. He sees in Meg, a sensitivity and real talent for crafting words into something much more important. And he teaches her with the kind of individual attention that only a fellow writer can. After all, like all of us, he’s working on his novel – which he freely reads from in order to “inspire” her. He urges Meg to enter a poetry contest, which she manages to win while experiencing even further hardship at home, struggling to survive from day to day. And on top of it all, Meg’s relationship with Mr. Auster is getting uncomfortably close.
The writing and their relationship all cumulate during one weekend in Florida, where Meg is entering a national contest and Mr. Auster is judging . Naturally, in a very disturbing way, their lives collide. The uncomfortable relationship is played out perfectly by the two actors. A young and rather inexperienced actress, Bruckner is perfect for the role of a conflicted high school student. She has rawness to her acting, balanced with an inner vulnerability that would make her the ideal intriguing student for Strathairn’s Mr. Auster. Straithairn really does a good job of presenting us with a man who can certainly talk the talk of the sage and important teacher, but he really can’t back it up with any action. You can tell his true motivations the instant he casts his eyes upon her, that he has some kind of ulterior motive, but like Meg, you really don’t want to believe it because he’s such a nice guy.
Blue Car has dark twists and turns that not only prove to be close to life, but make for an enjoyable and surprising movie. Well worth the viewer’s discovery.
Movie Grade: A-
Video: 3 out of 5
It’s rather low budget so there’s a bit of grain, but otherwise it serves the movie.
Widescreen anamorphic – 1.85:1
Audio: 3 out of 5
Dialogue heavy and that’s all you need to know.
English (Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround), French (2.0)
Extras: 3 out of 5
There’s not a lot of extras, but what’s there is good. The commentary by Montcreiff is on the technical side, but being a nerd, that’s what I like. The strongest extras however, are the deleted scenes, which really flesh out the movie and what the filmmaker originally invisioned for the film.
Overall: 4 out of 5
Blue Car would be a fine addition to and indie lover’s collection. It’s a film that expresses the heartache of growing up and the pain of being betrayed by those you trust.
Year: 2003
Written and Directed by: Karen Moncrieff
Starring: Agnes Bruckner and David Strathairn
Details: 96 mins / Miramax / Rated R