Shadows on the Wall

Sovereign

dir-scr Christian Swegal
prd Nick Moceri
with Nick Offerman, Jacob Tremblay, Dennis Quaid, Thomas Mann, Martha Plimpton, Nancy Travis, Jade Fernandez, Chris Greene, Ruby Wolf, Brandon Stewart, Kezia DaCosta, Megan Mullally
release US 11.Jul.25,
UK 15.Sep.25
25/US 1h41

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Inspired by true events, this drama is skilfully written and directed by first-time filmmaker Christian Swegal to tackle a huge topic with care. The film is dark and foreboding, especially after opening with a glimpse of a police shooting, but the storytelling is unusually matter-of-fact, swirling with ideas that are vital and provocative. It's also beautifully understated in a way that echoes the thoughtfulness of the central teen character.

Taking on officials head-on, Jerry (Offerman) home-schools his 16-year-old son Joe (Tremblay) to value personal sovereignty over the federal government. So he shouldn't worry about the bank foreclosing on their junk-strewn Arkansas house. He also takes him to the gun range for shooting practice before hitting the road together to present workshops on their worldview. Then Jerry is arrested for driving without a licence, and Joe gets a brief taste of another kind of schooling. Meanwhile, police chief John (Quaid) and his uniformed-cop son Adam (Mann) are on a collision course with Jerry and Joe.

Jerry's message is compelling, arguing for the value of each human being in the face of abstract forces lined up against them. His core theory is that people are real, corporations and agencies are fiction, and the government is a servant of the people. But Jerry's insistence on personal freedom and defiance of authority begin to reveal cracks as the narrative progresses. So his underlying willingness to turn to violence becomes chilling on multiple levels.

In powerful performances, Offerman and Tremblay create a terrific father-son dynamic, with riveting conversations and knowing non-verbal connections. Both are quietly intelligent. Jerry and Joe share their deeply held beliefs, but Joe is also seeking his own path. The parallel relationship between Quaid's coolly confident John and Mann's open-hearted Adam has its own distinct rhythm, revelling in lawfulness rather than anarchy. And there's strong support from Plimpton (as Jerry's lively girlfriend) and Travis (as John's patient wife).

Joe has been taught to be an independent thinker, so is nervous about attending a school. But this helps him see a bigger picture and question his father's more radical ideas. As reasonable and logical as Jerry sounds, he bullheadedly rejects civic responsibilities. For Joe, this raises red flags even as he continues to believe in the fundamental point. This complexity emerges beautifully. And the intensely personal way Swegal and his cast play this out is both sympathetic and shocking. Which makes the film hauntingly urgent.

themes, language, violence 8.Jul.25

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