Movie review: Don’t expect a coherent story from ‘Downtown Owl’

Ross Raihala, Pioneer Press
·3 min read
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The new feature film “Downtown Owl,” which was shot in and around St. Paul two years ago, has a lot going for it.

Locals will likely be interested to see how first-time filmmakers and real-life couple Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater transformed St. Paul locations like the Spot Bar and Highland Park High School into the fictional North Dakota small town of Owl. While the film’s small budget is apparent on screen, the pair made the most of it and fashioned a credible rural setting in the process.

Also, Rabe is a delight to watch as Julia, even if her character makes a series of illogical and irritating decisions. She’s best known for starring in nine seasons of “American Horror Story” and that experience has helped her develop a warm, likable screen presence. Really, the acting overall is top notch, from Ed Harris as the elderly townsperson Horace to “It”/“Shazam” star Jack Dylan Grazer as hyperactive teen Eli.

But “Downtown Owl” really falters with the basics of telling a coherent story.

It’s based on the 2008 novel of the same name by essayist and North Dakota native Chuck Klosterman (who, full disclosure, is a friend of mine). But without giving too much away, Linklater’s adapted script makes some substantial — and questionable — changes to the story, which is set in 1983.

The book focuses on three characters: Julia, Horace and sullen football player Mitch (August Blanco Rosenstein). But the film homes in on Julia, effectively knocking down the other two to supporting roles. It opens with her arrival to Owl, as she’s decided to teach a semester at the high school, seemingly to give her husband the time and space he needs to finish his graduate thesis.

From the start, Rabe and Linklater introduce a blur of characters, including several of the town’s teens, a football coach played by “AHS” alum Finn Wittrock and fellow teacher Naomi (Vanessa Hudgens), the only person in the film with a serious commitment to period-correct fashion and at least an attempt at a North Dakota accent.

Naomi lives a wilder life than her students and convinces Julia to join her for drinks at a local bar populated mostly by drunk dullards. (One of the few jokes that lands in the film comes from a bit about how everyone there has a nickname.)

From there, we learn Julia does indeed enjoy drinking alcohol and that her marriage is on the rocks. We also meet former high school football star and local celebrity Vance (Henry Golding), a brooding and inarticulate semi-hunk in a cowboy hat and tight Wranglers with whom Julia inexplicably becomes obsessed.

Julia remains at the center of the action, but the script introduces far too many side plots — many of which are left unexplained — that muddle the overall action. It’s difficult to understand why some of the characters are even on the screen, let alone care about them.

Rabe and Linklater seem to have been aiming for the whimsical, sometimes surreal vibe of Joel and Ethan Coen’s 1996 classic “Fargo.” Not only do they fail, they somehow manage to make the 90-minute running time feel like twice the length.

“Downtown Owl” is currently available to purchase or rent online through sites like Amazon and Fandango. While Sony has yet to announce plans, it will likely show up on a streaming service later this year.

‘Downtown Owl’

  • Directed by: Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater

  • Starring: Lily Rabe, Ed Harris, Vanessa Hudgens and Finn Wittrock

  • Rated: R for language, substance use, alcohol use and smoking

  • Should you watch? The local locations are far more compelling than the actual plot. 2 stars

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