Train Dreams

The 2025 American drama, Train Dreams, gave off a vibe that felt easy to predict from the initial trailers, with the presentation, atmosphere, and overall media reception seeming like something that screamed food for cinephiles, but not much for the general public. While based on a prize-winning 2011 novella written  by Denis Johnson that many compared to the work of Ernest Hemmingway, it wasn’t a source material on everybody’s radar and the deconstruction of traditional American values in the wave of societal and technological advancements wasn’t really a crucial talking point for a global audience, so it was a surprise to learn that not only did the film mostly deserve the multiple praises being lobbied at it, but that it was more consumer-friendly than anticipated.

Set in early 20th century Bonners Ferry, Idaho, Robert Grainer (played by Joel Edgerton) assists in the construction of the Spokane International Railroad but is traumatized after seeing a fellow Chinese worker get thrown from the bridge by a group of white workers, starting a belief that he’s marked for death from this point onward. While most of his time is spent chopping down trees, he enjoys a peaceful homelife with his wife, Gladys (played by Felicity Jones) and newborn daughter, but that peace is ripped away after he returns to find a wildfire has ravaged the area and seemingly killed the both of them. Having lost any sense of purpose, Robert tries to continue living as the quickly progressing world around him outgrows his humble nature, with the seeming ghost of his family preventing him from leaving his newly restored house. As he comes across people from different walks of life, this broken man will live a life that, while filled with hardship, will prove to have been fruitful as it nears the final stages.

Train Dreams is a deceptively engaging feature that elegantly presents an emotionally gripping tale with enough subtle weight to be grand and impactful, but also a sense of honesty to ground what could’ve been a repetitive experience. While it won’t work for everyone, the captivating atmosphere, stellar visuals and music, a very nicely worded script, intimate direction, and a pretty strong leading performances from Joel Edgerton, it proves to be more than just a film for cinephiles.

With all the buzz it received during its initial release at Sundance early in 2025 to its eventual full release on Netflix in November, Train Dreams seemed like a movie that’d appeal to a select audience but wouldn’t be a huge mainstream hit, and yet the film feels pleasantly well-rounded even if it still clearly has a preferred demographic. While the presentation has a sense of prestige about it, the story and how it portrays it is remarkably human, never feeling self-important and allowing its calming atmosphere, authentic performances, beautiful environment, and simple yet poignant writing to carry the audience through what could be a pretty stagnant course of events. The novella seems to have a lot of good components that were nicely translated onto the screen, retaining its graceful yet grounded tone of voice and theme-heavy but never preachy sensibility. With a solid running time of 102 mins, the movie is paced with enough vigor to never stay in one place for too long but can slow down and take in the tranquillity and sometimes bleakness of the situation so that the emotions never feel rushed or unearned.

Director, Clint Bentley, and his screenwriting partner, Greg Kwedar, previously showed they were a capable duo with their Oscar-nominated 2023 prison drama, Sing Sing, and while they switched roles in this feature, their talent at crafting a moving and expressive film that mixes harsh reality with a spontaneous sense of hope, is still very present. The direction is crisp, rich in atmosphere, commands the actors in a subdued but still memorable fashion, and knows how to make every shot and landscape look absolutely gorgeous without feeling like it’s showing off. The more personable story and delivery won’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but the peaceful vibe and good-natured messaging should prevent anyone from actively disliking it.

Joel Edgerton got a lot of buzz for his leading performance, and while an actor who’s not commonly on most people’s radar, that ambiguity often works in his favor since it leads to some genuine surprises like this. While Robert isn’t the most complicated character and the performance doesn’t feel like it’s stretching Edgerton to new heights, his portrayal of this very simple man burdened with tragedy feels incredibly genuine, and he’s a fantastic centre to this story all about evaluating the ‘’American Dream’’ and exploring how someone copes with being unable to fulfill those seemingly simple requirements (how can you live for your family when they disappear, how can you be of use to a country that outgrows you, etc). While not a shockingly new kind of performance, Edgerton is extremely good in this and essentially carries the film.

This isn’t to say his support is bad, as some are able to bring some nice flavor next to the film’s very stoically pensive lead, but in terms of actual characterization and narrative purpose, they don’t have much to offer. William H. Macy is pretty good as a seasoned labourer who imparts some nice wisdom onto Robert, Kerry Condon brings enough spunk to an otherwise standard role to make her brief inclusion memorable, Nathaniel Arcand is a nice friendly face who occasionally pops up, and Alfred Hsing may have no lines and only appears in glimpses, but shoots such a unforgettable death stare that he uses his brief seconds very effectively. It’s a shame that Felicity Jones isn’t more memorable as Gladys considering how much her bond with Robert is supposed to fuel his grief, but the role just doesn’t allow for anything beyond ‘’standard romantic support’’ and therefore, feels a little stock and predictable.

Alongside Edgerton, Train Dreams was praised for its amazing cinematography handled by Adolpho Veloso, and it is entirely earned as this film looks fantastic and does a great job creating an atmosphere as well as elevating its material to a level that feels befitting of its classical nature. Being entirely shot in more natural settings, the movie clearly put its budget to good use, with incredibly high-definition camera quality, naturalistic lighting, and picturesque angles and framing. The ambient sounds mixed with the very earthy color palette brings a peaceful tranquillity to the film that’s offset by instances of pitch blackness or even an extreme oversaturation of a color not commonly seen in nature (the wildfire scene looks almost demonic against how the rest of the film looks).

The shots feel so grand and encompassing, and when paired with the fantastic musical score by Bryce Dessner, which switches between being largely melancholic and somber to oddly soothing and reflective, it’s a film that used all its visual and technical components to improve upon its material. The editing by Parker Laramie is also very good, bringing a jolting activeness to the film, but also serves a purpose in making the bleaker moments feel all the more genuine by either refusing to leave a moment when tragedy is striking, or brutally and bluntly cutting after peril in order to further hammer in the sudden pointlessness of it all.

Train Dreams could’ve been a bore and may still be to some but given how well it’s been received, it just might surprise you. With a very straightforward, but easily connectable narrative that nicely weaves its themes into its characters, environment and experiences as effortlessly as the book seemingly managed, great visuals, tight editing, playfully impactful scripting and direction, and some pretty memorable performances (especially from Edgerton), it’s a film that won’t offer much in terms of surprises, but can engross you with something as simple as watching the trees blow in the breeze.