Tom Holland, the ultimate star and protagonist of the movie, appears only after the first 45 minutes. This 140-minute movie should have been a mini-series (someone may still make one, for all I know). As well, the brilliant support Robert Pattison appears only after Holland does. But then, the 45 minutes of "prelude" is comprised of no less than 3 separate stories, each good enough to become a separate movie. They are, of course, inter-connected in one way or another.
Story One. Vietnam veteran Willard (Bill Skarsgard) comes home with PTSD. While his pious mother wants him to marry Helen (Mia Wasikowska), he falls for Charlotte (Haley Bennett) at first sight. Their son Alvin (Tom Holland, and Michael Banks Repeta at age 9) losses both parents before puberty. After Willard's desperate prayers and sacrifice (killing Alvin's favourite family dog) fails to save Charlotte from cancer, he commits suicide.
Helen is the link to Story Two, which sees her married to mentally disturbed preacher Roy (Harry Melling), with whom she has a daughter Lanore (Eliza Scanlen). In a crazy moment, he takes Helen into the woods, stabs her to death, then asks The Lord to resurrect her. Like Will he dies too but not by suicide. The way he meets his death links to the third story. Lanore, just like Roy, becomes an orphan, losing both parents at the same time.
Story Three, a minor subplot in itself, is about a pair of criminals Carl (Jason Clarke) and Sandy (Riley Keough) whose business is in conning victims into compromising photos with Sandy, scantily attired or not at all. Roy is one of the victims. Another character in this arc is Lee (Sebastian Stan), Sandy's brother, a corrupt cop.
Remember: at this point, you have only seen 45 minutes of this 140-minute movie. Already, there are three stories each can legitimately claim a movie of its own. Arguably, what I have disclosed hitherto should not be labelled "spoilers".
The main story, as you surmise by now, is between Alvin and Lenora. There is a third, a preacher called Preston (Robert Pattison), who is charismatic like Roy but mentally sound, if devious.
Let me back up a little, and keep this as spoiler free as possible. After the opening 45 minutes, there is another brief prelude, set in 1957, just after the two children have separately become orphans. Alvin is taken into the wings of his uncle where he meets Lenora, a "step sister" adopted by his uncle. While there is no blood relationship between the two, romance is not on the cards. However, Alvin loves Lenora fiercely, as a sister. In this brief prelude, we see how Alvin braves a bunch of bullies twice his size in protecting Lenora.
Finally, we move to the main movie, in 1965, with a proliferation of period pop music throughout as background. Our two protagonists are now teenagers. The early part of the "main movie" runs parallel with development of the dark side in Alvin's character and Preston's cunning lustful scheme with Lenora as prey. I'll stop here before treading into spoiler territory. Suffices to say that usual elements of lust, pregnancy, violence, vengeance, confrontation, and body counts come in abundance, with poetic justice to boot.
This movie is a gutsy revelation of festering corruption (in more ways than one) under the serene pastoral surface of the Heartlands. Both the subject matter and the graphic visuals may be too much for some. Those who can stomach it will be rewarded with the enjoyment of some fine acting.
As mentioned, the cast is star-studded. With no gender discrimination, but reference only to this movie, the heavy-lifting is mainly by the men, and hence a heavy-weight male cast. Skarsgard, Melling, Holland and Pattison (in order of appearance) all shine while Clarke, in a comparatively less demanding roll, is still an impressive presence. One final observation, only of interest of Avengers fans: this is a reunion of Spiderman (Holland) and Winter Soldier (Stan).
Story One. Vietnam veteran Willard (Bill Skarsgard) comes home with PTSD. While his pious mother wants him to marry Helen (Mia Wasikowska), he falls for Charlotte (Haley Bennett) at first sight. Their son Alvin (Tom Holland, and Michael Banks Repeta at age 9) losses both parents before puberty. After Willard's desperate prayers and sacrifice (killing Alvin's favourite family dog) fails to save Charlotte from cancer, he commits suicide.
Helen is the link to Story Two, which sees her married to mentally disturbed preacher Roy (Harry Melling), with whom she has a daughter Lanore (Eliza Scanlen). In a crazy moment, he takes Helen into the woods, stabs her to death, then asks The Lord to resurrect her. Like Will he dies too but not by suicide. The way he meets his death links to the third story. Lanore, just like Roy, becomes an orphan, losing both parents at the same time.
Story Three, a minor subplot in itself, is about a pair of criminals Carl (Jason Clarke) and Sandy (Riley Keough) whose business is in conning victims into compromising photos with Sandy, scantily attired or not at all. Roy is one of the victims. Another character in this arc is Lee (Sebastian Stan), Sandy's brother, a corrupt cop.
Remember: at this point, you have only seen 45 minutes of this 140-minute movie. Already, there are three stories each can legitimately claim a movie of its own. Arguably, what I have disclosed hitherto should not be labelled "spoilers".
The main story, as you surmise by now, is between Alvin and Lenora. There is a third, a preacher called Preston (Robert Pattison), who is charismatic like Roy but mentally sound, if devious.
Let me back up a little, and keep this as spoiler free as possible. After the opening 45 minutes, there is another brief prelude, set in 1957, just after the two children have separately become orphans. Alvin is taken into the wings of his uncle where he meets Lenora, a "step sister" adopted by his uncle. While there is no blood relationship between the two, romance is not on the cards. However, Alvin loves Lenora fiercely, as a sister. In this brief prelude, we see how Alvin braves a bunch of bullies twice his size in protecting Lenora.
Finally, we move to the main movie, in 1965, with a proliferation of period pop music throughout as background. Our two protagonists are now teenagers. The early part of the "main movie" runs parallel with development of the dark side in Alvin's character and Preston's cunning lustful scheme with Lenora as prey. I'll stop here before treading into spoiler territory. Suffices to say that usual elements of lust, pregnancy, violence, vengeance, confrontation, and body counts come in abundance, with poetic justice to boot.
This movie is a gutsy revelation of festering corruption (in more ways than one) under the serene pastoral surface of the Heartlands. Both the subject matter and the graphic visuals may be too much for some. Those who can stomach it will be rewarded with the enjoyment of some fine acting.
As mentioned, the cast is star-studded. With no gender discrimination, but reference only to this movie, the heavy-lifting is mainly by the men, and hence a heavy-weight male cast. Skarsgard, Melling, Holland and Pattison (in order of appearance) all shine while Clarke, in a comparatively less demanding roll, is still an impressive presence. One final observation, only of interest of Avengers fans: this is a reunion of Spiderman (Holland) and Winter Soldier (Stan).