‘Catching Dust’ Review: What Exactly Are We Supposed To Feel? [Tribeca]
Erin Moriarty (left) & Jai Courtney in Catching Dust. Courtesy of Tribeca Film Festival.
A little over a half hour into Catching Dust, Amaya (Dina Shihabi) says, “You still don’t know what those plants mean, do you?” It’s at this moment that the general confusion felt by the audience comes to light, as the film gives no second thought about its lack of exposition. Though, in the context of the scene, she may be literally talking about plants, it makes us wonder, “What’s really going on,” and if we’re supposed to be picking up something that’s not easily conveyed. It’s a film that, though it isn’t confined to a single location, reeks of isolation.
Set in a commune in the middle of a desert, one that doesn’t have easy access to town or greater society, Catching Dust revolves around Geena (The Boys’ Erin Moriarty) and Clyde (Jai Courtney of Kaleidoscope), a couple who, partially by choice, live in isolation — a lifestyle that Geena’s rapidly becoming tired of, hoping to leave her ex-criminal husband, but is stopped when a pair of outsiders (NYC locals Amaya (Shihabi) and Andy (Ryan Corr) arrive, hoping to find a bustling town but instead landing upon the two, derailing Geena’s relocation and forcing the couples to become closer than any of them want to.
If there was a stronger force driving Catching Dust or if its ideas were more cohesive, perhaps it could’ve been stronger, but it’s severely lacking in its narrative and its script, written by Stuart Gatt — who also directs the film, his first feature in both respective roles. Perhaps the biggest issue with the characters is the fact that we’re thrown into their story towards the end without the necessary information we would’ve had if we’d been following them for a longer period of time.
The film introduces too many new developments in the third act that it explains deeply, making us wonder what the real point of the movie was. Are we supposed to feel bad for Geena, who’s trapped in a loveless, seemingly dangerous marriage? Are we meant to view it as a look into another person’s life? Does it want to make us sympathize with the struggles in Amaya and Andy’s (privileged) life? No matter which way you look at it, many of the ideas that are given the time and energy necessary to be unpacked feel melodramatic, making us wonder if the events leading up to what we’re watching would’ve been more interesting than what’s played out on screen.
To be fair, all four leading actors give compelling performances when the writing allows it. Though Moriarty’s third-act turn is powerful, it feels slightly unmotivated, as it seems to go from zero to one hundred incredibly rapidly before dropping back down to a calmer tone and manner. Jai Courtney is given a few particularly emotionally-driven moments, though they’re hard to understand because of his misguided, gravely Southern accent — his beard is very menacing, though.
The final moments of Catching Dust take us back to the opening scene, one that, as we initially watch it, gives us a completely wrong idea of the scene’s meaning, an event that isn’t explored until the film’s epilogue, leading to more confusion regarding this scene, as well as parts of the film’s story as a whole. These scenes, however, — like most of the film — are beautifully shot, with a gorgeous purple sunset illuminating the background of the opening and closing moments, drawing a parallel between the moments, one that doesn’t work all too well.
