Do a Good Turn Daily

By Tom Pacak

A Scout is: trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean, and reverent. As an Eagle Scout, I remember citing this law after every Scout meeting. It's an oath that we treat all of those with love and respect. Nobody was ever an exception to this law. I thought of The Scout Law while watching Debra Granik’s “Leave No Trace,” a compassionate tale of a veteran, Will (Ben Foster) and his daughter, Tom (Thomasin McKenzie) living off the grid in Portland, Oregon. The law is shown in every frame of the film, whether it’s the caring people at social services, a cautious truck driver who drives them to Washington, or a group of folks living in the woods of Washington. All of the people here know where Will and Tom are coming from. In a cynical world where these two would easily be brushed off, instead, they’re taken in with open arms. The outlook on human connection is very positive here. 

In the beginning, Will and Tom are living in an isolated section of an urban park. They have good communication with each other. Time is spent playing chess, practicing survival skills, and supplying other homeless vets with medication to combat PTSD. Will clearly loves his daughter to death and she feels the same way. The only thing keeping them apart is Will’s PTSD. Will keeps himself off the grid from others exposing his feelings. One pivotal scene that shows this is when Will is at social services and struggles to finish a true/false exam. Questions range from how he treats others, his depressive thoughts, and how he manages his emotions. Will isn't used to opening himself up and easily fails to finish the test. 

One day, social services come in and arrest Will and take Tom to an orphanage. They weren’t breaking any laws living homeless but they were living in a public park. They are soon set up in a foster home working for a tree farmer, Mr. Walters (Jeff Kober). The house they’re put in is compact and remote but it’s not home. So the two continue to drift until they find the right home.

What makes “Leave No Trace” so distinctive is Debra Granik's ability to focus on the psychological situations of her characters. Tom just wants to settle down and adjust herself to new surroundings while finding a real family. She loves her father but is stuck shifting from different environments so quickly. Will is a drifter. Always on the move and trying to run from something. He can’t settle down because he feels like he doesn’t deserve that family and openness. This drifting is dangerous for Will in a sense that it will result in death, or worse, isolation.

Director Debra Granik knows how the poor and unfortunate live. She has an extraordinary vision for telling stories of their survivals. Her second film “Winter’s Bone,” which gave Jennifer Lawrence a breakout role, is about a young woman trying to solve a mystery while taking care of her beloved siblings. Debra Granik's documentary film, “Stray Dog” focuses on activist and Vietnam War veteran Ronnie Hall’s psychological struggles. All of her films have a political message about how these people should be treated. In a world that is filled with hate and anger, her works have messages of openness and kindness instead. In our current political climate that is toxic and not empathetic towards the other side, I hope to meet more people like the ones in “Leave No Trace.”

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 4

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