Review: Dreamin' Wild

Image courtesy of Roadside Attractions.

It was at some point in the past decade that I discovered the song after, I believe, I was skimming through a Pitchfork article on the top 200 songs of the 1970s. In the process of looking up a few of the selections of which I was not familiar, I came upon Donnie and Joe Emerson's "Baby," and was immediately struck by its haunting, soulful crooning backed by a mellow, almost eerie late 1970s beat.

I was surprised to find that the song was written and recorded by a couple of teenagers, whose semi-cheesy album cover for their only record, "Dreamin' Wild," might not exactly lead a listener to believe they'd stumbled on a gold mine - but the album was rediscovered in the 2010s, given some rave reviews by prominent music magazines and was the subject of a New York Times article, upon which the new film - "Dreamin' Wild," directed by Bill Pohlard, who was responsible for the solid Brian Wilson biopic, "Love and Mercy" - is based.

The film, much like its musical source material, is soulful and often sad, a story about a lost dream that finally comes true, only to lead the dreamer to realize that he's not the same person he once was when he originally had the dream and, therefore, might no longer be able to play the part that he once fantasized for himself.

Casey Affleck plays the grown version of Donnie Emerson, the whiz behind the band's music, who operates a failing recording studio circa 2011 in small town Washington. His brother, Joe (Walton Goggins), primarily works with his hands and looks back on their music-making days as "fun," but certainly not the life calling that his brother envisioned. Also central to the story is their farmer father (Beau Bridges) who goes to great lengths - often heartbreaking ones - to show his sons that he believes in them.

The film jumps back and forth in time, occasionally placing Affleck's grown-up Donnie in the same scene as the teenage version of himself (played by Noah Jupe). The framing device in the picture is an appearance from an exuberant small-time record producer (Chris Messina, having a very good year) who wants to rerelease "Dreamin' Wild," so that it gets the attention that it missed the first time around. 

Joe and much of the rest of the family are excited about the newfound love for the record, but Donnie is hesitant. We gradually learn that his own musical career never took off - at the film's beginning, he and his wife (Zooey Deschanel) are mostly playing wedding parties - and that he has a difficult time facing the family that was willing to support his career at great risk.

There's also a tension between the two brothers. Donnie is the family's musical genius and often chides Joe for not being able to keep time on the drums during their recording sessions. This is done lovingly in the early scenes when they are boys, but becomes harsher during their attempts at putting together a reunion tour.

There are excellent performances all around, from Affleck's portrayal of the temperamental artist and Goggins' turn as the brother who knows that his sibling will quickly overshadow his own talents to Bridges, who gives one of his best performances in years as their father. 

"Dreamin' Wild" is a smaller indie film that, much like the album that inspired it, might be overshadowed by some of the season's flashier titles. But, also like the Emersons' album, it deserves to be discovered. It's a soulful little film about what it takes to create something special artistically, but also about the people an artist relies on for support in doing so.