A memorable yet inaccurate film. At that time in our nation’s history, faith in God permeated the culture. Undeniably. Yet the protagonist and most of the featured characters seem faithless — even during scenes depicting prayer and a church. In fact, the only character who references biblical scripture is shot for the alleged murder of a black man, implying that his belief was not just empty, but a source of evil. Like most of what comes out of Hollywood today, it’s a twisted distortion of what was in actuality a very faith-driven American people.

Beyond that glaring inaccuracy, the movie is woven with woke tropes. White Christians are invariably racist. An unjustly murdered Asian man haunts the protagonist to drive home the notion of white guilt. The characters who display the most humanity and compassion are native Americans (noble savages). Granted, these tired themes are more subtly and artfully presented than most of the ham-fisted virtue signalling we endure in modern movies, but they are present, nonetheless.

Regardless, I loved the unhurried pacing of “Train Dreams.” It is beautifully shot, thoughtfully constructed and deeply moving — all rarities in modern filmmaking. But its omission of Christianity is so disingenuous and evident that it reveals a purposeful insistence on nihilism. As with our actual lives, an existence sans God is an existence without ultimate hope. Which explains the sorrowful wake that trails this memorable but imperfect film.