Train Dreams, the “staggering” drama starring Joel Edgerton and Felicity Jones, is coming to Netflix later this year.
The upcoming film, based on Denis Johnson’s 2011 novella of the same name, sees Edgerton portray Robert Grainier, a logger and railroad worker who spends a vast amount of time away from his wife, Gladys (Jones), and daughter.
Set in early 20th century America, the drama follows Robert as he leads a life of “unexpected depth and beauty” in a “rapidly-changing” landscape, all while yearning for the comforts of his home and family.
Co-starring Kerry Condon and William H Macy, Train Dreams was acquired by Netflix following its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in January, and the streamer has now confirmed that the film will be released on its service on 21 November.
Directed by Clint Bentley, who co-wrote the screenplay with Greg Kwedar, Train Dreams has garnered critical acclaim since its premiere, currently possessing an approval rating of 97% on Rotten Tomatoes from 36 reviews.
Netflix
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“The picture gets at the very nature of transcendence: The shape of the world only appears to us when it’s too late,” wrote Vulture, who described it as a “staggering work of art” and one of the “best films of the year”.
“The painful beauty of this film is in the hope, fragile and yearning, that the revelation will come before the closing credits,” noted The Times, who praised the “superb performances” in the “unforgettable frontier drama”.
“At its best, writer/director Clint Bentley and co-writer Greg Kwedar have crafted a gorgeous and poignant film of quiet, bruised life in a fragile place,” wrote The Guardian, while Toronto Star called the film “thoughtful” and “visually sumptuous”.
Netflix
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“A Western epic of breathtaking visual splendour and formidable lyrical cinematic poetry, it’s a work containing all the wondrous, devastating layers of an entire life,” wrote TheWrap, while Screen Daily called it “confidently constructed” and “persuasively performed”.
AV Club was similarly positive as they dubbed it a “thoroughly engrossing period piece of dreamy details”, while The Daily Beast said that it was a “poignant and poetic drama about the things that vanish and those that remain”.
Train Dreams will be released by Netflix on 21 November.
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Reporter, Digital Spy George is a freelance writer who specialises in Movies and TV. After graduating with a degree in Film Studies and Journalism from De Montfort University, in which he analysed the early works of Richard Linklater for his dissertation, he wrote for several websites for GRV Media. His film tastes vary from blockbusters like Mission: Impossible and John Wick to international directors such as Paolo Sorrentino and Hirokazu Kore-eda, and has attended both the London and Berlin film festivals.