Review of Come Early Morning (2006) by Walter M — 20 Jul 2012

"Come Early Morning" starts with Lucy(Ashley Judd), a building contractor, taking the walk of shame but not so much that she insists on paying for the motel room. In talking to Doll(Candyce Hinkle), she finds out her dad(Scott Wilson) is back in town. Seeing a chance at reconciliation, she accompanies him to the new church he is attending. When that old time religion does not stick, Lucy is back to the old grind at the local honky tonk where she gets into a fight with a fellow patron that Cal(Jeffrey Donovan), who is new in town, helps to break up and then takes a liking to her.

Without much of a story to speak of, "Come Early Morning" has to rely on the charms of its rough hewn subjects to engage the audience with the study of a character who is haunted by the past mistakes of her family, leading her to act impulsively, sometimes without the help of alcohol. Wrapping that all up, the movie is perfunctory in its conclusions but thankfully not its resolution. In this case, I would have to say that the country music and the religion add regional flavor instead of acting as stereotypes. Regardless, the movie is helped by a good cast that also includes Diane Ladd, Stacy Keach and Ray McKinnon, of which Ashley Judd fares best in a thoroughly lived in performance.