This short piece is on the English language film 'Nomadland', released in 2020, and written, directed and edited by Chloé Zhao. It won the Academy award for Best Picture, Best Actress (Frances McDormand) and Best Director.
Right at the beginning of Nomadland, the protagonist Fern, who has given up her house and started living in a van, is asked a question on the lines of "Are you now homeless?" Fern replies instinctively "No I am not homeless. I'm just houseless". Later in the film, when she is asked about her van, she says "I will introduce you to her". These responses are at the heart of the film, as it explores the lives of modern nomads, who have no fixed residence, almost in a documentary like manner. Most of the actors in the film are not professional actors but nomads in real life. The film documents how the nomad community support each other, and there is a poignant commentary on how that is due largely to the current socio-economic systems that have failed them.
But it is not a documentary. It is a deeply personal journey of one individual, as it intersects with the lives of others in the community. It is about what being at home means to her, and how she views and navigates the relationships in her life. Fern is a woman, who appears to have lived in one place with her husband for a long time. At some point, the town loses its industry, on which most residents depended for their livelihoods. The two, however, continue to stay in the town. But after her husband dies, and the town loses its zip code, she must look for a new home. She puts the most important of all her and her husband's prized belongings in a van and sets off. She carries with her some old and new photographs and reminisces about her fond memories. She customizes the van to her liking. She takes care of the people she meets and is taken care of by them. As far as she knows, she never really left home.
Nomadland is masterclass in filmmaking. It is abstract, yet deeply heartfelt. Like many films of its genre, it is not about the plot but about form. Like its protagonist, it does not worry about going from point A to point B. It does not worry about exposition. The best scenes in the film are when there is no dialogue. Early in the film, when Fern is packing her belongings, she gets deeply emotional as she smells a denim jacket. No amount of dialogue would have told us effectively what the acting in the scene tells us: she is remembering a loved one who is now gone. Background music is used very sparingly. Most of the film goes by in silence. And hence, in a few key scenes when the score swells in Ludovico Einaudi's music, it moves us deeply.
Similarly, at the end of the film, when she returns to her old house, it is merely the movement of the camera that tells us that the protagonist has reached the end of her emotional arc. Fern is standing in a doorway, a frame within a frame and the camera films her from behind. She is at the centre of the frame, and everything around her is dark. As she leaves the house and moves into the light, the camera follows her to reveal a beautiful landscape. It focuses on the landscape even after Fern leaves the frame. There could have been no better way to tell us that Fern has left one home to find another. I was fortunate I could watch the film in a theater. It is an engulfing experience.
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