As a filmmaking exercise, “Rose of Nevada” is commendable. Mark Jenkin’s latest film is an often unrelenting sensory experience; the sound mix is full of nature sounds, splashing waves and muffled dialogue. By shooting on 16mm and in the Academy aspect ratio, Jenkins creates a grainy visual language that is claustrophobic even when scenes take place in open areas. Shots linger on old, rust-covered boating equipment and other discarded items. There’s a sinister aura to the proceedings that gets under the viewer’s skin.
Jenkin is in full control of the technical aspects of his film. In addition to writing and directing, he also served as editor and cinematographer. If you’ve seen his previous films like “Enys Man,” you’ll know he brings a unique vision to his films. They’re not designed to comfort you, and they play best for film wonks and discerning indie movie audiences looking for a challenge.
I hate to drag out the film critic cliché of admiring a movie more than I liked it, but “Rose of Nevada” fits that bill. My first viewing at the Toronto International Film Festival left me in a more dismissive mood than my more recent second viewing. Knowing that the story itself was a series of diminishing returns allowed me to focus on how well Jenkin kept a cold, effective handle on everything else. He’s a filmmaker to watch.
From a story perspective, “Rose of Nevada” feels like a stretched-out episode of “The Twilight Zone.” The Rose of Nevada is a boat that appears to take its crew back in time, yet only one of its members finds that disturbing. At almost 2 hours, the film wears out its welcome if you don’t really care about its characters. And there’s little reason to care, as you can pretty much guess that following any narrative crumbs thrown at you will lead nowhere.
Still, I have to admire (there’s that word again) how Jenkin toys with the audience’s mind. Is his lead character, Nick (George MacKay), trapped in a ghost story of sorts, stuck in a folktale with ominous undertones, or has he simply gone mad? The townsfolk take on a conspiratorial nature midway through the film, but since we’re seeing events through Nick’s eyes, he may be an unreliable witness.
Nick is a married father whose wife and daughter are living in near squalor in a rundown Cornish fishing village. His roof leaks when it rains, and he can barely make ends meet. His next-door neighbors are an older couple whose wife “confuses the past and present,” according to her husband. Nick finds her standing outside in the rain, muttering something about the return of her son, whom we later learn is deceased.
When the film opens, the empty Rose of Nevada has returned to shore. It’s been missing since 1993. The boat’s owner, Mike (Edward Rowe), assembles a crew that includes a crusty skipper named Murgey (Francis Magee), Nick and Liam (Callum Turner), and a derelict who lives in a shed down by the seashore. They set off to fish, and when they return, the formerly near-empty town is now bustling and full of people. The year also appears to be 1993, three years before either Nick or Liam was born.
Even stranger, Nick’s family no longer exists, and his neighbors are a lot younger than they were when he went off to sea. The neighbors also think he’s their dead son despite Nick’s claims to the contrary.
Meanwhile, Liam doesn’t seem disturbed by these alterations. He now has a family who thinks he is their patriarch, so he has no desire to go back to the future. Liam’s actions, and the odd responses of Murgey and Mike, send Nick spiraling into confusion.
While MacKay is very good, Turner continues to be an actor who leaves me cold. I’m lackadaisical about wherever the story intended to leave me, and unsure of its ruminations on whether the needs of the many outweigh those of the few. But I admire the way “Rose of Nevada” tells its story. Sometimes, my admiration is enough.
★★★
ROSE OF NEVADA
Written and directed by Mark Jenkin. Starring George MacKay, Callum Turner, Francis Magee, Edward Rowe. At Coolidge Corner. 115 minutes. Unrated (profanity)
Odie Henderson is the Boston Globe's film critic.