PULSEfilm: Off The Map
BY HILLA BERNSTEIN
June 2005 - Taos, New Mexico is a far cry from Worcester. Anyone
who has ever visited the “Land of Enchantment” understands
the appeal and beauty of its picturesque desert landscape. Joan Ackermann
both understands it and invites us to experience it with her. The multi-talented
and eloquent author, journalist, playwright, screenwriter and co-founder
of Great Barrington’s Mixed Company theatre troupe set her screenplay
(originally a play for stage) for the movie Off The Map outside of Taos,
the perfect back-drop for the well-woven story. The film is visually nothing
short of a postcard come to life.
Cinema 320 and the Mass Bay Film Project co-sponsored both the May 15
screening and the talk that followed. Nearly 100 people were in attendance
to view the film and to hear Ackermann’s revealing discussion of
the film’s conception and evolution.
Off The Map tells the story of the Groden family: Bo (Valentina de Angelis),
a sharp, inquisitive 12-year-old, her father Charley (Sam Elliott), whose
depression sets in during the summer, and her mother Arlene (Joan Allen),
whose strength and resourcefulness keeps the family together. The Grodens
sustain themselves with very little money beyond what Charley’s
veteran benefits provide. This quirky, once adventurous family grows its
own food, barters and rummages at the dump, not making more than $5,000
per year. However, one thing that they haven’t done in years is
file their taxes, an oversight which becomes a problem during the summer
depicted in the movie. IRS agent William Gibbs (Jim True-Frost) visits
the Taos, New Mexico Grodens’ unusual home and life changes for
all involved, especially Gibbs.
Charley’s depression is held in stark contrast to Bo’s vibrancy
and determination to experience the outside world. She loves her father,
a man who considers himself “a damn crying machine” while
refusing to take medication. William Gibbs’ arrival (combined with
his ignorance about depression) provides a distraction and an outside
influence for Bo and her father. We see Gibbs take up painting, perhaps
in an attempt to loosen the grip of his depression. Charley’s best
friend George becomes a companion for Bo, taking her fishing and shopping.
We see George’s impact most when he leaves for Mexico to get married;
reminding the audience of her young age and illustrating her mother’s
hold on her, Bo throws her one and only tantrum. Interspersed with this
magnetic tale is an accurate, inspiring visual depiction of the beauty
that is the American southwest.
Off The Map began as a stage play for Ackermann, who drew from her own
depression when creating Charley’s experience. Before writing the
play, she lived in New Mexico for ten years with a family whom she describes
as living life on their own terms. One can imagine how the writer’s
own depression might have interacted strangely with the desert family’s
vitality and spirit, much like Charley’s did with his family’s.
Ackermann described the story’s inspiration, the moment when she
heard the voice of Charley. She explained, “There wasn’t an
idea, there was a character.” Character-driven stories seem to be
the norm for this versatile author and jack-ofall- trades. She began writing
poetry during her teens, later becoming a journalist with articles published
in The Atlantic, Audubon, GQ, New York Magazine and Time. On a trip to
NYC, Ackermann met – purely by chance – actor Campbell Scott,
who would eventually, after seeing the stage production, sign on to direct
the screen version of Off The Map. After adapting the screenplay, Ackermann
spent 10 years in pursuit of funding that would allow her to make the
film; as she explained, “There was a lot of serendipity involved.”
Off The Map is an honest, humble look at one family’s experience
over the course of a summer. For its intoxicating scenery and fascinating
story, this film deserves not to be missed.
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