AFI Dallas Report: Midlothia Review

A blistering rural chamber piece, Midlothia builds its combustible drama slowly, but it doesn't take long for the fires to ignite.

It's the morning after a party. Fred (Bill Sebastian) plans to leave town, which also means leaving behind close friends Bill (Eric Reeves), Duck (James Thomas Gilbert), and April (Jessica McClendon). They gather at the mobile home residence of Fred and Bill; the circumstances of Fred's departure provoke plenty of conversation, and as pent-up feelings are expressed, emotions become heated, and then the shotgun comes out.

The tension rises and falls and then rises again in unpredictable bursts. Director Bill Sebastian adapted a play by Steven Walters, and while he opens up the action a bit beyond a single setting, the characters still appear to be bound by the claustrophobic, sweltering setting, which both reins them in and precipitates their outbursts.

The relationship between the three men captures the dynamics of friendships. Both Bill and Duck think they are Fred's best friend. Duck is married and miserable, and is presented in the least favorable light, while ultra-responsible, apparently virtuous Bill may have some blind spots. Fred spends much of the time in a hung-over angry haze while maintaining his position of the leader of the group.

Midlothia is a character-driven drama, so we know there will be secrets unveiled and individuals unmasked for who they really are, yet the narrative avoids feeling schematic or contrived. There's enough personal baggage on display that the viewer can navigate the psychological minefield without needless markers in evidence.

The most surprising transformation comes with the character of April. Initially she displays an intoxicating veneer of coy sexuality as she flirts with Bill. She then becomes a mediator of sorts between the three men, before finally unleashing a torrent of fierce emotions that leaves her (figuratively) naked and exhausted. It's a remarkably deft performance by Jessica McClendon, who offers a penetrating look inside the soul of the girl next door.

My only nitpicking is with certain aspects of the characters of Duck and Bill, who are, respectively, too annoying and too tremulous for my personal taste. Still, that's probably a tribute to the filmmakers -- they certainly don't drag the film down. If anything, they provide a good balance to the more appealing Fred and April.

The film screens at AFI Dallas on Monday, March 26, and again on Friday, March 30.

MIDLOTHIA
Official Web Site
AFI Dallas - film guide