Review: The Station Agent (***)

THE STATION AGENT
A film review by Steve Rhodes

Copyright 2003 Steve Rhodes

RATING (0 TO ****): ***


THE STATION AGENT, nicely written and directed by Thomas McCarthy, is a
character study about three very different people who come together for
friendship and companionship in the tiny town of Newfoundland, New Jersey.
The story itself is unusual since it is a movie that stars a dwarf, but it
isn't about being a dwarf. As 4' 5" Finbar "Fin" McBride, Peter Dinklage is
a very serious, reserved and taciturn guy who is a million miles away from
the Mini Me stereotypes we've come to expect in films. The charming movie,
which has few missteps, goes awry only on those few occasions when it
overemphasizes a few of the clichés about very short people.



Fin's passions are everything having to do with trains. In the story, he
has just inherited an old train station on a half acre of land in
Newfoundland. Although he'd be happy never to speak to anyone, he isn't
given that opportunity. Working at a small canteen near the train station,
Joe Oramas (Bobby Cannavale) is a gregarious guy who is constitutionally
incapable of being quiet. He insists on being Fin's new friend, no matter
how many ways Fin tries to turn him away.



Olivia Harris (Patricia Clarkson, PIECES OF APRIL), the third member of the
group, is a recently separated woman who has come to the country to try to
get away from her troubles. She is unable to forgive herself because she
looked away for a brief moment while her only son was playing on the monkey
bars. She doesn't talk much about her dead son, but his memory clearly
haunts her.



Olivia, a notoriously bad driver in this frequently funny story, meets Fin
after she runs him down with her car, not once but twice in the same day, as
he walks along the road. When she tries to make amends by dropping by to
see him, she tells him when he opens the door, "You're safe -- no car." He
looks completely unconvinced but reluctantly agrees to let her in anyway.



The characters are all worth caring about, and, although the story eschews
any overly dramatic moments, it is a touching one nonetheless. The fine
performances by Dinklage and Clarkson are particularly memorable. The film
also features some lovely visuals of the characters walking along the train
tracks. When you leave the theater, you'll be glad that you chose a movie
with such genuine characters who had such a heartfelt story to tell.



THE STATION AGENT runs 1:28. It is rated R for "language and some drug
content" and would be acceptable for teenagers.



The film is playing in nationwide release now in the United States. In the
Silicon Valley, it is showing at the Camera Cinemas.



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