Tecomogamic 8 - Nomadland

Watching Nomadland hurt the soul. I’m not going to say it was enjoyable, as a matter of fact, in parts it was simply downright depressing. But enjoyability doesn’t make a movie great anymore than special effects do. What makes a movie great is whether or not the audience can be impacted by what they have just watched. Nomadland is like been doused with a bucket of ice cold water which also happened to be filled with pointy rocks.
What this film as to say about modern civilisation is simply dreadful. The visuals throughout the film of Amazon packaging plants is mind boggling. I found my mind yawning at the boredom of it all. And the dry cold vastness of the abandoned town visualised towards the end of the film leaves the viewer feeling empty and helpless.
It is a tale of modern day survival, but ultimately it is also a story of cycles. Economic cycles, weather cycles, human cycles and surprisingly bowel cycles. This film takes the viewer on a ride throughout America revealing many of the ins and outs of life on the road. It is mostly about the cycle of life, living, loving and death. It’s simply sad to watch and what it has to say about the future of the western world should be a warning that is taken seriously but I doubt most people will even take the time to watch it neither alone learn something from it.
From the crap we put into our mouths to the crap that comes out we are all in this together and in the end one day it will be the end. Modern human liberty pivots around love and when that centre is broken liberty becomes confusing, neglected and wasteful. There is a saying “Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold”. And that’s about all we can hope for. Damn. At the end there is barely a glimmer of hope on the horizon. However, it is also the story of perhaps a new way of living. Somehow the entire history of humanity is has found itself full circle, like that of a snake eating it’s own tail. From the Indians who once lived a nomadic lifestyle across the plains of America to the new nomads who are more and more frequently finding themselves on similar trails across the country it is hard to ignore that perhaps this is how a lot of humanity may have to sustain itself in the future, not only in the states but in many western countries around the world. On the road, continuously moving from place to place in search of food, perhaps this may just become the new normal for how people get through.
The film is brilliantly acted by Francis McDormand and is superbly put together by director Chloé Zhao who has planted a subliminal message behind all the visuals of the film. Everything says something and the whole story is easily assembled by the viewer making the experience seamless. We know what she is saying without having to have it rammed down our throats. Is it well worth the watch? Yep. No doubt. But I do believe that this films impact will depend heavily on the viewer themselves. From other reviews I have read some people are finding things in this movie that I simply over looked. I guess that’s what truely makes this a good film. The fact that the viewer, no matter who they are or what their attitude is towards the modern world will find something of value to be consumed in the wastes of Nomadland.