Joe hit Blu-ray on June 17th from Lionsgate Home Entertainment
“You’d work in this rain, wouldn’t you?” — Joe
“If you need me to” — Gary
I fell in love with, and reviewed, Joe at SXSW 2014. So coming back to the film on home video was a no brainer for me, but second viewings can often be the more telling of the two. Would Joe remain as raw and affecting for me as it was in the theater? Or would previously glanced-over flaws become more apparent with familiarity?
Fortunately, my affection for Joe only increased upon second viewing, not to mention months of thought and reading about the film. And since I’ve already reviewed the film once before, I’m going to spend some time writing about elements that leapt out to me upon revisiting it.
The film is called Joe, and rightly so, as events largely revolve around Nic Cage’s titular character. But while Cage turns in an Oscar-worthy performance that deserves its own article dedicated solely to it, I found myself gravitating strongly towards Tye Sheridan’s Gary and Gary Poulter’s Wade this time around.
Gary is the beating heart of this film; a young man who is dominated and essentially captive to his abusive, monstrous, and drunken father Wade. While I think it is clear that David Gordon Green’s film, as well as Gary Hawkins’ screenplay (adapted from Larry Brown’s novel), primarily focuses on Joe and how Gary and Wade’s entrance into his life puts him to the ultimate test… Green never gives short shrift to the other leads. And Gary is so well-written and well-acted by Tye Sheridan that he essentially makes the movie. Gary’s unbridled need for rescue is something that Joe both inherently recognizes and seeks to fix, and also pushes back against, seeing how it might push him over the edge.
The climax of Joe involves Nic Cage’s character being pushed to the brink by petty local rivalries and the drunken abuses Wade has inflicted upon Gary and his family. After a beautiful monologue about restraint and how only a supernatural sense of it keeps Joe’s various demons in check, he loses all sense of restraint and goes on a bit of a rampage. Joe is a physically powerful man, with no fear in the face of violence or confrontation, and when a petty local feud and the police seem to be pushing Joe past his limit, his decision to either help or abandon Gary becomes the razor’s edge of the movie. Joe’s demons seem to have a power over him that forever prevent him from being a wholly good man.
Gary, on the other hand, is another exploration of power in that Wade’s history of abuse has him totally trapped. While Gary will soon be a man and proves himself to be a competent and eager worker, not to mention his physical ability to beat down a grown adult, Gary feels he must stay under the power of Wade in order to protect his younger sister and mother. His burgeoning physical power and ability to provide for his family is stifled by Wade’s tyrannical hold over him.
And then you have the antagonist Wade, played fascinatingly by Gary Poulter, a homeless man whom Green cast in the film and who tragically and mysteriously died after the production on Joe wrapped. (I highly recommend this article about Poulter from the Austin Chronicle, which has stuck with me for months after reading it). Wade’s character offers another study in power dynamics as his addiction to alcohol has so fully overtaken his humanity that murder and sexual abuse have become convenient, almost casual tools in his arsenal of methods to secure his next drink. Wade is a flat out monster, and even with that fact Green finds moments of humanity to bring to his character, and Poulter embodies this man in a singular and fascinating way that no traditional actor could ever have brought to the table.
As Joe, Gary, and Wade dance the dance of fate, each playing off of one another to find either redemption or oblivion, there are several moments of such raw power that tears streamed down my face. The first, quoted above, is such a wonderful exchange of earnestness that Gary’s entire character is laid bare within it. After his father’s poor work ethic threatens Gary’s future on Joe’s work crew, Gary approaches Joe in a pouring rain. Drenched and wearing Joe’s girlfriend’s clothes to dry off, Gary pleads for a chance to continue working. Gary proves his mettle to Joe in that moment, and gains his respect. And having Joe in your corner, it turns out, is a powerful tool. The friendship that is secured in this exchange is so powerful and genuine that it moves me to tears.
Later, when the climax is nearing and Wade has taken Gary’s younger sister away to be abused for money, an out of control Gary seeks Joe’s help. Saying all he wants is to borrow Joe’s truck, it eventually becomes clear to Joe how dire the situation is and this scene sets the course for Joe’s redemption/fate. But before Joe is aware that Wade has taken Gary’s sister, this interaction serves as perhaps the most powerful scene of the film:
“I should have given you a boxing lesson” — Joe, seeing Gary’s beaten face.
“I don’t need no boxing lesson. I know what to do… He whooped my ass and threw me out of the truck. Because he knew that I was gonna kill him. I could kill his ass. I could kill him just as good as you could.” — Gary, who then physically lashes out at Joe, having lost all control.
“I know you could. I know you could. I know it. But you don’t have to do that. Okay, son? Just stay here with me” — Joe, tightly restraining/embracing Gary.
Between the incredible surges of raw emotion like those described above, the fully fleshed out characters, and the power dynamics fascinatingly explored in this deeply masculine, and ultimately powerfully satisfying and redemptive deep-south drama, Joe stands out as one of the best films of 2014.
On top of those elements explored in this write up already, David Gordon Green’s penchant for filling not just Wade’s role with non-actors, but padding out significant roles in the cast with local non-actors, gives a wonderful space for personalities and regional dialect to shine in ways most film’s can only attempt to emulate. Then add to that the film’s dread-soaked score by regular Green collaborator David Wingo (Available on Spotify!), and a naturalistic shooting style from cinematographer Tim Orr, and you’ve just got one hell of a powerful film to contend with.
The Package
David Gordon Green grows in my estimation all the time. Having reviewed his last film, Prince Avalanche, on home video as well, it is clear that Green does his best to ensure that the home video experience you get with his films are unique. Green hosts his commentary tracks in a wonderful way, bringing unconventional talent from the film along with him to have round table-style conversations. Here in Joe, the commentary track includes Texas local non-actor Brian D. Mays, who plays the foreman of Joe’s work crew in the movie and makes a colorful and heartfelt impression in a film that could have been too dark and dire without him. Green also brings composer David Wingo in. The three of them provide a commentary filled with shared questions and analyses, and essentially interview one another as the movie plays out. It is a refreshing approach to commentary tracks and I appreciate Green’s continued desire to bring something innovative to the table, even in the home video releases of his films.
Also featured:
Deleted Scenes
The Making Of Joe Featurette
The Long Gravel Drive: The Origins Of Joe Featurette — This feature is particularly enlightening as it tells the story of Larry Brown, the author of the original novel, and Gary Hawkins, who was a college professor of Green’s who adapted the novel for the screen. It is neat to know that history, and that Joe is Green’s vision of his professor’s adaptation of a novelist’s greatest work.
If there are ten better films in 2014 and Joe somehow gets knocked out of my personal favorite films of the year list, then truly 2014 will be a year of even greater cinematic achievement than 2013 was. And I’m not sure my film-loving brain can handle that. I find Joe to be a personal film, one that I resonate with and cheer for. Perhaps it is too dark and brooding for the tastes of some, but I love it in such a way that it feels dear to me. I recommend Joe without reservation, but any familiarity with Green’s body of work you have will probably be a good measuring stick for whether you will respond in the way I did. I find Green to be one of America’s most fascinating filmmakers working today, and Joe is his crowning achievement to date.
And I’m Out.