The Netflix-Fantastic Fest-Stephen King connection strikes again with In the Tall Grass, proving his best adaptations of late are of his lesser-known works. The first chapter of It was a great hit but was followed up this year with a lacking Chapter 2. Netflix brought Gerald’s Game to life a couple of years ago featuring one of the best performances of the decade from Carla Gugino. Now the streaming giant struck another chord with King’s novella In the Tall Grass.
While exhausting, it’s done with purpose. This is a true reflection of the characters’ circular journey in this metaphysical labyrinth of faith. A pause should be given if it’s a true analysis of religion or Christianity, but the film is littered with biblical references to give the audience something to chew on beyond the nonsensical plot.
That’s the true hook that director and screenwriter Vincenzo Natali gives. The travelers trapped in a Kansas grass field are just vessels to explore faith and consequences as they die, disappear, and resurrect at random while time and space jumps every direction.
There’s no true timeline to the story. Where it properly begins and ends remains a deliberate if not frustrating mystery. But as far as capturing the psyche of the trapped road trippers, it quickly accomplishes the goal starting with brother and sister Cal (Avery Whitted) and Becky (Laysla De Oliveira) en route to give her future baby up for adoption. With her maternal instincts kicking in, they stop by a church and hear a lost boy in a grass field. Unable to continue without search, they step in and within minutes are lost as well.
A brilliant use of spatial stereo and editing separate the two. Their position seems to be at random, as is their place on a linear timeline. They’ve experienced only a few hours in the grass while it’s later found out via Becky’s ex, Travis (Harrison Gilbertson), in a search effort that they’ve been missing for two months, leaving an air of suspense of when Becky’s baby will be born considering she entered the original timeline with three months until her due date.
Between that is the Humboldt family whose son Tobin (Will Buie Jr.) is the original screaming voice asking for help as he’s lost. His charming father Ross (Patrick Wilson), a businessman and former Christian band frontman who’d be easily mistaken for a Southern Baptist pastor, later appears as a guide to the muddy and sweaty labyrinth that appears to feed on sacrifice.
In between or after all the introductions, it’s not entirely clear, Ross develops a religious relationship with a large boulder that he claims holds the key to their peace and rescue. He’s a messiah figure, but in their world of randomness and uncertainty, his sanity is also in question as original couples and foes turn against and join forces to escape their personal hell.
There’s no one-to-one parallel to the Bible, but between Ross’ Christian background and insistence of helping find Becky’s salvation, along with her being referred to as Mary and sprawled out like a crucifix, the battle between faith and logic grows with each passing scene. Ross may be painted as a bit too fanatical of a shepherd figure once he’s reborn, but Wilson’s resilient performance overcomes the broad brush, as does Gilbertson in search for redemption for Travis.
While it’s usually a complaint that a movie feels longer than its runtime, this benefits from being such a grueling experience despite it being 90 minutes. In the Tall Grass feels like an absolute marathon but is a truly captivating experience with more on its mind than a non-sensical labyrinth. This is among the best King adaptations.
