Review of Trucker (2008) by Katie H — 18 Nov 2009

This might be the best movie I've seen all year. Maybe in multiple years. It's amazing. I had the privilege of meeting Michelle Monaghan, Jimmy Bennett, and the writer/director James Mottern for a Q & A after the movie.

I was impressed at every point by this movie and in the Q & A, the audience was echoing my thoughts. There were a lot of comments like, "Wow, you got the whole blue-collar thing right on. The clothes, look, the walk, the voices, the way the characters carried themselves was very true to type." The director, James Mottern responded by saying he grew up in the coal country of VA and then lived in Riverside, CA and he based the look on those two locations. As someone who also lived in Riverside, I like that the movie was set there and that it didn't try to romanticize the look and feel.

Michelle Monaghan said that she feels that throughout the movie, the characters continually play against type, doing exactly what you wouldn't expect in another movie, but exactly what is true to character. **Slight spoiler alert**: There is a scene where Michelle's character smells her son while he's sleeping. You expect a character in that situation to kiss him when she leans in close. But this character, Diane Ford, is not sentimental, she doesn't kiss him. She just inhales deeply and moves away.

This is a ridiculously moving, amazing, entertaining, and real movie. I recommend you all go see it, and though I know it has a limited release, it is definitely worth a drive.