Tumbleweeds (1999)

Directed by Gavin O. Connor
Written by Gavin O. Connor & Angela Shelton
Starring Janet McTeer, Kimberly Brown, Jay O. Sanders, Gavin O. Connor, Lois Smith

My Advice: Wait for MST3K.

Mary Jo Walker (McTeer) is white trash made bad.  She's, with no other better word to describe her, a slut.  Her plan is always to blow into a town, possibly populated by an old boyfriend, dragging her hapless daughter Ava (Brown) with her.  Once in town she works her wiles on a guy, they fall hopelessly in love and get married.  This lasts for, maybe six months if they're lucky.  Then the guy in question turns out to be a complete ass, possibly drunk and abusive to boot, and they're back on the road again.  When we meet this duo, they wind up in San Diego, where they're trying to start over (and possibly work a fifth marriage) with a truck driver (Connor). 

Someone tell me please--what is the point of this film?  I don't mean to go Dr. Laura on you, but films should have a purpose.  If they are a portrait of a person's life, we would like that life to please be interesting.  How interesting is it to see a woman completely ruin not just her life, since she's ultimately a waste, but her daughter's life as well?  How useful is a film that takes a completely amoral attitude toward this woman, leaving the audience to pass judgement, especially when the only sensible judgement is complete and utter contempt?  Why would anyone other than a film critic sit through a film when it's almost impossible to have any sympathy for morons?  My incredulity peaked when a friend of Ava's comes over, learns all about Mary Jo, and tells her basically, "I heard all about you and your four marriages and I think you're so cool!"  What in the hell?  That's cool?  Why would anyone think that was cool, even if you were twelve?  Or maybe I'm missing the point and the point of the whole thing is that Mary Jo is emotionally equivalent to a twelve-year-old.  Trouble is, with a character like this, one would expect them to at least want change or redemption.  Mary Jo doesn't want this.  She just wants men to look at her tits and possibly lay her.  Often.

Regardless of my rant, McTeer and Brown play their parts very well, but the parts serve no purpose so who cares.  I give this film about a half-star for the sake of Jay O. Sanders, who plays the one intellectually gifted member of the dramatis personae.  His scene where he relates the story of why he owns a camper would have been quite good in a movie that I could actually give a damn about.  Everyone else, even the director, could probably have been replaced by pretty much anyone.  It's just a damn shame.