‘Rose of Nevada’ offers eerie voyage through time
The eerie and ultimately affecting “Rose of Nevada” is not just a mystery wrapped up inside an enigma. It’s also definitive proof that multi-talented filmmaker Mark Jenkin has arrived intent on choking the life out of convention. He will likely remain an acquired taste for audiences afraid of venturing beyond the roteness of the tried and true, but there will be a day they’ll rue not mounting the bandwagon sooner.
For this is an artist with moxie and vision, skilled enough to not just write and direct, but also lens, edit, score and plot the sound design, excelling at all. Much like Christopher Nolan, Jenkin is aware that movies are not bound by time or physics. Rather, they present a two-hour window to play God in molding the fates of his characters. In this case, two dichotomous men united only by the shared experience of having stumbled into a fourth dimension, where their minds and bodies co-exist in two realms three decades apart.
But this isn’t just their personal stories, but also that of a once thriving Cornish fishing community that’s fallen victim to a ruthless Darwinist economy. Jenkin’s criticisms are subtle yet hard to miss, especially in his film’s moral that no matter the time or place, there will always be winners and losers. And which side of the coin you fall depends entirely on the situation you find yourself in at any particular time.
In the present, it favors Nick (“1017’s” George MacKay), a strapping father and husband whose domestic bliss is overshadowed by his pressing need to earn enough cash to repair his family’s leaky roof. While Liam (“Eternity’s” Callum Turner), Nick’s soon-to-be co-worker aboard the cursed fishing vessel of the film’s title, is an aimless, lonely drifter seeking a steady spot to lay his head. But when they suddenly find themselves back in 1993, their situations are reversed. Now it’s Liam who’s the grinning family man and Nick the rudderless, lost soul. Thus, one man desperately wants to return to the 2020s and the other one doesn’t.
It’s a fascinating study in contrast, both psychological and sociological. It’s also fodder for an engrossing riddle pulled directly from the Rod Serling playbook. But don’t expect even a hint of an explanation. As was the case with “The Twilight Zone,” you either go with it, or you don’t, placing the onus on Jenkin to convince us to suspend disbelief. He accomplishes this by always keeping you guessing by assembling (he’s the editor, remember) his film as a puzzle, the pieces of which you’re called upon to fit together as we see fit.
It can be maddening at times, but to ensure you don’t throw in the towel, he maintains your attention abetted by his meticulous use of imagery, all shot by Jenkin with a wind-up Bolex camera that ensures every shot, be it his character’s faces or gutted fish, lasts no longer than 30 seconds. So, for a 114-minute movie, it almost goes without saying that a great deal of imagination is required to fill all those frames.
Which is exactly what Jenkin does, busily subsidizing shots of humans with richly textured, vibrantly colored glimpses of weather-beaten objects contrasted against bright-yellow fishing slickers, cozy knit sweaters and dirty dinner plates. Even better is the footage shot at sea, allowing us the opportunity to witness the hard work and mental toughness it takes for Liam and Nick to man a fishing troller captained by the estimable Murgey (former real-life fisherman Francis Magee), a stereotypical old salt who nearly steals the movie from his hunky shipmates.
Kudos also to Rosalind Eleazar of “Slow Horses” fame and Edward Rowe, excelling in essential supporting roles as Tina and Michael, the only two people left in the once-thriving town who can still vividly remember the day 30 years ago when the venerable Rose of Nevada was lost at sea along with her three-man crew. So, imagine their surprise when the unmanned ship suddenly reappears seemingly out of nowhere, leaving them with the emotionally fraught decision of whether to recommission her.
They do, of course. Otherwise, what other means would MacKay and Turner have for their characters to sail back to 1993? Both survive the trek well, relying almost entirely on facial expressions and intense physicality to flesh out characters who rarely speak. In fact, the entire ensemble, which also includes Jenkin’s real-life partner, Mary Woodvine, as the loving wife Nick leaves behind, is a marvel.
All fortify the look and feel of the denizens of a small fishing village that has never stopped grieving the men and the industry it has lost. And, likely, neither will you. Just like you won’t ever forget your maiden voyage with Jenkin, the one-man band who whisks us off on a supernatural adventure destined to blow your mind.
Movie review
Rose of Nevada
Rated: Not rated
Cast: George MacKay, Callum Turner, Rosalind Eleazar, Francis Magee and Edward Rowe
Director: Mark Jenkin
Writer: Mark Jenkin
Runtime: 114 minutes
Where: In theaters June 19 (limited)
Grade: B+
