A group of children band together one summer to cover up a tragic mistake.
DRAMA
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George Washington (2000)Written and Directed by David Gordon Green
Starring Donald Holden, Candace Evanofski, Damian Jewan Lee, Curtis Cotton III, Rachael Handy, Paul Schneider, Eddie Rouse |
David Gordon Green knocked my fucking socks off with Halloween back in 2018 and I have felt the desire to go back and watch his stuff ever since. DGG is one of those directors/writers that I have seen almost everything in their filmography but had no idea they were all his. Pineapple Express, The Sitter, Prince Avalanche, and Stronger are all films that I’m familiar with but it was his and Danny McBride’s work on Halloween that really got my attention. I recently got access to his directorial debut, George Washington which is completely different from those other titles I mentioned. It’s a very ambitious first go and my favorite thing he has ever done.
The setting being a tiny town in North Carolina is a massive part of the film. We are constantly hanging out with random kids from the town and following their footsteps during one fateful summer that would change their lives forever. Nasia narrates as we see her character break up with a boy named Buddy to start dating another boy named George. Buddy and George are good friends and constantly run into one another while wreaking havoc around the town. One day, them and two other kids are playing around in a restroom and a tragic accident causes them to band together in strange ways. George Washington is a very visceral film with some jaw dropping cinematography from Tim Orr. The setting is so heavy and the performances are all impactful whether they are a main character or some rando in the town. It takes serious guts to make a film like George Washington and I couldn’t recommend it more to film fans who like atmosphere and emotions spilling out all over the place. DGG has always had a true gift and I now see his whole career as an amazing 20 year run that is far from over. |