Last night I went to my favorite art house theater to see Montana Story and I really enjoyed it. Erin (Haley Lu Richardson) and Cal (Owen Teague) are estranged siblings who return to the Montana ranch where they were raised after their father suffers a stroke and is placed on hospice. They disagree over what should be done with an aging and decrepit horse named Mr. T once they sell the ranch. Cal believes the humane thing to do would be to euthanize him but Erin reacts very emotionally to this plan and impulsively decides to haul him from Montana to upstate New York where she lives. The disagreement over the horse triggers a past trauma between them involving their abusive father and another horse and, as they work out the logistics of transporting Mr. T, they begin to heal. The plot unfolds very slowly and there are many long moments of silence so some viewers might become impatient with it but I found the narrative to be captivating because of the beautiful cinematography and the stellar performances from Richardson and Teague. The expansive Montana scenery is used in juxtaposition with the tense and emotional drama that is playing out between the two characters in a claustrophobic setting and this is highly effective. Richardson and Teague have great chemistry and their portrayal of siblings feels really natural. You can feel the quiet animosity radiating off of them when they see each other for the first time in seven years and this tension continues to build until they finally confront each other in an incredibly powerful scene. I loved the resolution between them but I loved the solution they find for the horse even more (a lovely metaphor for their relationship). It is definitely a slow burn but it is ultimately very moving so I would recommend it.
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