A Love Song

Framed by soaring mountains and a gleaming lake in Southwestern Colorado, a weathered woman (Dale Dickey) catches crayfish, reads books about constellations and birds, and waits in her small camper for a special someone to arrive. The woman is Faye and, like Lito (Wes Studi), the childhood friend she hopes will respond to her invitation, she is long widowed. She lost her beloved husband, the only love she’s ever known, seven years ago, and although she still misses him, she’s ready for some company.

Slow, sweet and restrained, A Love Song is Max Walker-Silverman’s lovely first feature, a tale of longing and need. With solid characters built from mere scraps of information and a screenplay filled with long silences and searching close-ups, this film is all about emotion. When we watch Faye as she listens to melancholic country songs on her transistor radio, studying bird species by day and the constellations by night, we understand that this is not someone who is simply existing. She’s living and learning, but she’s also lonely. This is the main difference with the character of Fern in Chloé Zhao’s 2021 gem Nomadland, to which Walker-Silverman’s debut feature has often been compared (though it’s a slightly far-fetched comparison). Fern makes a conscious choice, whereas Faye doesn’t seem truly happy.

From time to time, diverting visitors wander into Faye’s campsite – friendly neighbours with a dinner invitation, indigenous cowhands with an unusual request – their quirky intrusions sometimes a relief, sometimes a nuisance. Lito eventually arrives with his loyal dog in tow, and the two of them spend 24 hours together. He brings her the flowers he knows she likes, takes her picture (she hasn’t had her picture taken for years) and plays the guitar for her. They eat ice cream and eventually spend the night together. A shy smile graces Faye’s face for the whole day. This is not meant to last, though – and they both know it. When Lito inevitably leaves in his pickup, Faye’s heartbreak is felt by the viewer too. Dickey is simply magnetic: every expression, eye twitch and half smile is in the right place at the right moment. At the end, when she climbs on a rock to watch the sunrise, what lingers is a combination of warmth and undefeatable sadness.

Diletta Lobuono

A Love Song is released nationwide on 9^th December 2022.

Watch the trailer for A Love Song here: