There but for the grace of God, go I. Nobody wants to live like this. Nobody. Oh, there are folks who don’t like being tied down and folks who love to travel and explore and meet new people … but nobody wants to live out of a van in a desert. And it’s one thing if you’re 19 and perhaps you have drug issues or a general lack of direction, but forced to live like a vagabond in your 60s means something has gone so wrong in your life that even cheap, meaningless, and cynical solutions carry no weight. And that’s this very American place called Nomadland.
In 2011, the US Gypsum plant in Empire, Nevada closed for good. Without an income, the entire town of Empire struck out a nd closed overnight, its residents scattered to the winds. Nomadland is the story of one former Empire resident who didn’t strike back. Fern (Frances McDormand) lives in a van. A crappy van. A crappy van tricked out to hold up to three dishes. Fern finds holiday work at an Amazon plant. Apparently there’s a skill set involved in wrapping a pack of bubble gum in a box large enough to hold a microwave oven. Fern had a husband. He died. Fern had a real job. It died. Fern had a house. It’s still there; but, here’s the thing about all shelter: it means nothing without access to heat, food and water. Fern is quick to point out that she’s “house-less not home-less.” That’s just pride talking; she’s homeless.
So during the 330 days of the year in which there is no work, Fern drives around looking for … anything. While her existence is sad, Fern herself isn’t angry or sad. Frances McDormand plays Fern as happy-go-unlucky. There’s a resolute discontentment within her, but one that rarely surfaces. For most of the film, she accepts “this is my reality: I sleep in a van, I poop in a bucket; I live on soup and Sterno … my kitchen is eighteen inches from my bathroom.” It’s not a good life. Pollyannas looking for a silver lining are not going to find one. Conservatives looking to blame someone might just start with the economic conditions that pushed US Gypsum to close in Nevada. How is Empire different from the future of any coal town?
There’s something inherently American about Fern’s haunted ghost town of a life. We pride ourselves on a marvelous economy and yet there are millions of people for whom it doesn’t work. If this film were made in the 1970s, it would have an ironic running theme of Simon & Garfunkel’s “America.” This is an American a scene as the Superbowl, and yet one that will draw many fewer eyes.
This is the kind of circumstance you want to blame on Trumponomics. That’s wrong — in the immediate at least. These circumstances happened in 2011, hence, this case had nothing to do with Trump. However, Nomadland is exactly the result of what happens when a country prioritizes idiocy above social safety nets — idiocy like a big useless wall, a 
meaningless war, or -perhaps most apt here- a bonus for the kind of CEOs who relocate businesses like US Gypsum out of the country.
As a people, we quite easily could have allocated resources to save Empire just as we could allocate resources to transform any coal town into one that makes clean energy. But we won’t. And the question remains – how is any of us different from Fern? Do you really believe you could never find yourself living in a van? Why? Are your resources and network so solid? How do you know? How are you sure Fern’s fate doesn’t await you?
There is sobering and then there is SOBERING. Nomadland is about as somber a film as they come: the portrait of a woman who didn’t really make poor choices and yet lives like a hobo anyway. It is the exact opposite of the American dream and yet 100% American at the same time. While the portrait is fascinating and the study poignant, I found this film sadly repetitive. I mean, it has to be; Fern doesn’t have the resources to make big things happen, so they don’t. Bottom line is that while this is a superior look at another of the facial blemishes America hides with concealer, a little goes a long way – you can watch any ten minute segment on Nomadland and get the feel for 98% of the picture. I’m not exaggerating here. If you don’t have it in your heart to watch the whole film, don’t; you can get the feel for this picture in ten minutes tops. That said, I don’t have any problem presenting Frances McDormand with another Oscar for this performance.
US Gypsum had an Empiric withdrawal
Its workers scattered like a waterfall
“Home of the brave?”
Your town’s in the grave
Hard to claim when there’s no home at all
Rated R, 107 Minutes
Director: Chloé Zhao
Writer: Chloé Zhao
Genre: Lives you don’t want
Type of being most likely to enjoy this film: American nomads
Type of being least likely to enjoy this film: Executives at US Gypsum
