Rent American Woman (2018)

American Woman (aka The Burning Woman) review by Mark McPherson - Cinema Paradiso

American Woman is a familiar tragic tale that is all the more forlorn for once more taking aim at the all-too-common Americana crime of kidnapping. Teaming in true crime despair, the film focuses on the agony and grind of trying to solve the case of a missing child. It never ceases to be a constant source of mystery thrillers and never ceases to continue stressing the stress of it all. American Woman is one of the few that hits hard enough to be both meaningful and enthralling without falling into routine cliches.

In a small town of Pennsylvania during the late 1980s, single mother Deb Callahan struggles to make ends meet with her teenage daughter Bridget and Bridget’s young child both living with her. Since Deb’s life is a bit in tatters, considering her strained relationship with her sister, she strives to help make Bridget’s life a little better. Deb volunteers to watch Bridget’s son while she ventures on a date with her baby’s daddy, hoping that the cycle of single-parenting can be resolved. What she ends up with is a missing daughter.

Deb believes that Tyler, Bridget’s baby daddy, is the one responsible but has no proof. An investigation is launched and the community bands together, working alongside a detective. But Deb is drained and feels exceptionally helpless in such a situation. Who wouldn’t? So many questions rush through her mind of what she could’ve done better and what was left that had to be said to her daughter. The days turn into weeks and the weeks to months. Her house becomes target practice for her frustrations and bouts of despair are abound. Suicide becomes an option as well.

The film is essentially two films for its halves in stages of grief. For the first half of the picture, we watch the horror was over Deb realizing her daughter is gone. She struggles and thrashes her way towards coming to terms with her grief. Skip ahead a few years and Deb tries to reform herself. She goes back to school and tries to make amends with Tyler, though it doesn’t go right. In fact, not much goes right outside of her career that takes off in human resources. She starts a new relationship and it ends miserably. But she has a chance of finally finding the whereabouts of her daughter, perhaps giving her the opportunity to move on.

Sienna Miller gives an astounding performance as Deb, perfectly encapsulating the various forms of a mother on the edge, being pushed off that edge, and struggling to claw her way back to the top of stability. When she’s distraught, she’s an absolute mess, exploding with rage and sorrow that melts the soul. It’s easy to feel for her and her massive struggle to make things right, as impossible as it seems at times. She feels hopeless for being blamed for Bridget’s drug addiction and being drawn into relationships that end in disaster. It’s all leads to a bit of a bittersweet catharsis by the time Deb has a mere glimmer of hope in the form of closure by the end of the picture.

Director Jake Scott takes great care to show a draining build of one woman stricken by the loss of her daughter. We stick with Deb and get to know her and watch how life doesn’t so easily turn around, often seeming like every turn is a dead-end. There’s a relatable tone to that sense of despair that perfectly encapsulates how easy it is for a single mom to feel the cruelty of the world when everything comes crashing down. Some cases that turn cold only leave the individual deeply saddened by the tragedy. American Woman showcases how such an event can lead to so much more than just bleak days ahead for a woman already struggling.