Nominations: Academy Awards 2021

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One of the most critically acclaimed films of the year, Nomadland definitely falls into the category of “movies that taught me something new about the country.” Written and directed by Chloé Zhao, it stars Frances McDormand as a woman who leaves her small town in 2011, as a result of the Great Recession of 2007-2009 to travel around the American West while living in her van.

Based on a non-fiction book entitled Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century, by Jessica Bruder, the movie is a raw portrait of what life is like for that group of people who don’t have a permanent address and travel the country, from job to job, either by choice or by necessity.

Frances McDormand is absolutely perfect as Fern and her performance is subtle and poignant. It is one of those quiet performances, without any theatrical tricks to convince the audience that she really is a nomad. You can easily believe it thanks to her beautiful acting. What also helps is that most of the cast is composed by real-life nomads playing themselves, which gives the movie a feel of a semi-documentary.

The only other well-known actor is David Strathairn, who plays a nomad named Dave and who meets Fern a couple of times on the road.

Each nomad’s story is different, and everyone has a specific reason to be living that life, and Chloé Zhao does a wonderful job of capturing all of those stories without being invasive or sensationalist. The director, known of her work with independent movies, is already making history with Nomadland with her multiple nominations: she is personally nominated not only as director, but also for screenplay, editing, and producing it. It is also the first time two women are nominated in the Best Directing category (Zhao is joined by Emerald Fennell, who directed Promising Young Woman).

Nomadland may not be everyone’s cup of tea, since it is a very introspective and quiet story, with Fern being by herself for a good part of the movie. It is, however, a wonderful story and a great opportunity to expand your horizons and get to know another part of the country and what many people are going through beyond the big cities.