Bad weather or extenuating circumstances have been many a cause of the displacement of families from their homes. Fire is a big cause of this as well. “Rebuilding” is a film about this subject. It originally premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year and is directed by Max Walker-Silverman and stars Josh O’Connor as a rancher. I’m sure a lot of people in the West and Midwest have gone through a similar experience, and it couldn’t have been a fun one. Having moved quite a bit when I was a child, I can relate to being displaced from the home and area I was used to growing up but not on a level like this. This is another level entirely, and it’s pretty rough to think that it is happening more and more lately. 

Dusty (Josh O’Connor) is a man who has lost his home in a Colorado wildfire. He ends up living in a FEMA mobile home community with other families who lost their homes as well. He has a daughter Callie Rose (Lilly LaTorre) and an ex-wife, Ruby (Meghan Fehy) he still has contact with. He’s looking for work as a ranch hand, but all he can find is work on a road crew. Despite his bad luck and tough circumstances, he tries to give his daughter a normal life. They join in on get-togethers with the other people from the community, but in the end, this is still a temporary home for them. 

The supporting cast is a good one as Kali Reiss plays the mother, Mali, of another little girl, and they were displaced from her home as well. She becomes a friend to the O’Connor character. Amy Madigan plays Bess, the mother of the Fehy character and grandmother of the LaTorre character. She is like a conscience to her family. The breakout performance of the movie is from LaTorre. She is fantastic in a quizzical, curious way. Her learning and asking questions bring a whole separate element to the story. This creates a terrific dynamic between her and the O’Connor character. The other members of the community are played mainly by non actors and add a level of credibility to the cast and film. Real people playing themselves add gravitas to a movie. Despite the good quality supporting cast, this is mainly a role for O’Connor to shine once again in 2025.

O’Connor has broken out as a leading man in films like The Mastermind, from Kelly Reichardt, The Sound of History, from director Oliver Hermanus, Wake Up Dead Man, the latest Knives Out Mystery from writer/director Rian Johnson and now Rebuilding. These are all different kinds of roles, but one thing remains clear. O’Connor is a leading man. He has a Gary Cooper quality to him when he’s on screen. You can relate to his characters on a human level. He’s very likable and sympathetic as an actor. Here, he plays a man who is struggling to make ends meet despite owning two hundred thousand acres of land. Land he can’t use because it’s scorched by the fire that cost him his home. He plays this character as very somber. You can’t help but feel sorry for his plight as a father of a little girl and rancher without a ranch to work. O’Connor is so good in this role. It’s no wonder he’s become a leading man in Hollywood. He deserves it.

There is a quiet nature to this story. Despite it being a difficult one to watch, there are moments of solitude where you can understand what these people are going through. The quiet moments are where the film shines. It doesn’t have to be a loud, boisterous story to get its point across. With the quiet nature comes the cinematography that shows the West in a way I hadn’t seen before. Scorched earth mixed with rolling hills and mountains in the background are both very beautiful in their own way. Throw in a beautiful score by Jake Xerxes Fussell and James Elkington, and you have a movie that works on many levels. 

One element of the film I thought was quite amazing was the soundtrack of old countries and / or folk songs. One in particular struck me very hard, and that was from recently deceased singer/songwriter John Prine called “How Lucky Can One Man Get”. This song was at the end of the movie but struck me very hard with its tone and message. The soundtrack as a whole was filled with songs similar to this and added a nice tone to the story and film. This is what a good soundtrack should do. It should compliment the film’s story and look and feel off it.

“Rebuilding” is a film that won’t be everybody’s bag. It’s a quiet character study of this man trying to make it despite a bad hand he was dealt. O’Connor once again gives a great performance as a rancher who can’t give up and has to find a way to move forward despite what he’s been through.The supporting cast is fantastic with a breakout performance from young Lilly LaTorre. She will be seen again, I’m sure of it. Walker-Silverman takes this story and gives it gravitas in a way I’ve rarely seen before. The quiet solitude mixed with the beauty of the land and area combined with an amazing score creates a film that is one of a kind this year. Audiences should definitely seek out this movie for its beauty and great performances. 

4 stars

Dan Skip Allen