Along with bereaved parents JoJo and Ben Floss (played by Susan Sarandon and Dustin Hoffman, respectively), Joe Nast (Jake Gyllenhaal) is trying to cope with the death of Diana (Careena Melia)-their daughter, his fianc?(c). While Moonlight Mile contains a weak subplot dealing with the trial of Diana's murderer, most of the film centers on how these characters try to move past their pain and go on with their lives.
Though the film is set during the Vietnam War, the timeframe is used only once or twice-and then, weakly. Loosely described themes of commercialization of the small town, of loves gone off to war and never seen again, and of trust in higher powers and the government, seem misplaced and used in only the vaguest of ways.
What is at the core of this story is its emotional truth. Everyone is hiding something, and though they are not the sordid secrets that make sensational headlines these days, they are resonant and emotionally exacting. Although there are behaviors that seem unexplainable or dissonant early in the film, most of these loose ends are tied up by the time the film comes to a close.
Guilt is a huge part of what Mile is about, with everyone having something to hide from their family, from the other characters, and even from themselves.
Like Terms of Endearment, Mile runs parallel storylines about two generations reacting to a tragedy. Alexsia Landeau plays Cheryl, Joe's love interest, but their tale becomes tedious, because it is so transparent.
What is far more interesting is the ways Writer and Director Brad Silberling draws circles around the coping mechanisms and changes in the relationship between two parents who have lost the daughter they deeply cared for.
JoJo, a writer, turns to cigarettes and alcohol and a withering sense of humor that shocks her husband more than once. She also reacts strongly to Joe's presence, taking him under her wing and into her home with a vengeance. Sarandon's performance is fiery and vulnerable in turns, as over and over again she demonstrates the full extent of both JoJo's strength and pain.
Ben, on the other hand, is essentially domestic. While JoJo spits and screams, Ben tries to downplay the pain of those around him. Watching the movie, the viewer can almost taste the subtle differences in the flavors of his emotions as he rifles through them like faded photographs in a desk drawer, all the more potent for how little one can expect what is found, or prepare oneself for the repercussions of their sudden appearance. Hoffman's range and abilities to portray a character, though never in question, are further validated by his performances.
Also a treat to see was Holly Hunter, whose role (although limited) allows her to portray a lawyer concerned with getting justice for the Floss family, as well as for Joe.
Which brings me to Gyllenhaal. His scenes are mercurial; as difficult to watch as they must have been to act because of Joe's place as a character whose position is ever -changing. It seems that Silberling confused the notion of a character growing with that of revealing events that happened in his past. Although Joe goes through a transition in his quest for both Cheryl and release from his guilt, he seems to be following a scripted path and not quite a natural one. Gyllenhaal does well with what's there but I have to take issue with the path that Silberling lays out for his protagonist. And although films about older generations don't always do well at the box office, my opinion is that Moonlight Mile could have done more with relating the struggles of JoJo and Ben Floss and less with the fumbling attempts of Cheryl and Joe as they try to learn how to trust again.
