It’s been too long since Jennifer Lawrence starred in a movie worthy of her talents. “Causeway” is a welcome return to form for the A-lister. It’s been a dozen years since Lawrence’s breakout, Academy Award-nominated role in “Winter’s Bone,” Debra Granik’s portrait of a teenage girl searching for her missing father in the rural Ozarks of Missouri. In the time since, Lawrence has landed an additional three Oscar noms, winning for “Silver Linings Playbook,” and found major box office success with the “Hunger Games” and “X-Men” franchises. Admittedly a very different film than “Winter’s Bone,” “Causeway” is another intimate character study, and a powerful reminder of Lawrence’s captivating presence. This is the kind of movie star who does not need the help of special effects, a big budget, nor a star-studded ensemble to help her carry a film.
Directed by Lila Neugebauer, “Causeway” tells the story of Lynsey, a U.S. soldier who returns home to New Orleans after suffering a traumatic brain injury while fighting in Afghanistan. Besides dealing with the physical aftermath of her accident in rehab, where she needs help using the bathroom, brushing her teeth, and getting dressed, Lynsey is also struggling to cope with her situation emotionally. “I just never thought I would come back here,” she tells James (Brian Tyree Henry, “Atlanta”), a mechanic she befriends. It’s not the city that she has a problem with. “It’s that house,” she explains. “I’m the only one who made it out.”
“Causeway” follows Lynsey as she gets a gig cleaning pools, avoids interacting with her mom, with whom she has a strained relationship, and works toward being cleared so she can ship back to Afghanistan ASAP. All the while, she bonds with James, who is coping with his own trauma related to a car accident.
What sounds like a recipe for an overdramatic cheesefest is anything but. Lawrence and Henry are the heart and soul of the film. Thanks to their performances, and a script and director that trusts the actors’ to bring this subtle, restrained story to life, “Causeway” is an absorbing and emotionally resonant exploration of loss, grief, and friendship.
“Causeway” is now in theaters and streaming on Apple TV+. Ottessa Moshfegh, Elizabeth Sanders, and Luke Goebel penned the script.
