Once a week we’re taking underrated films and giving you reasons to watch. Each one is hand-picked, of a different genre, and easily accessed and enjoyed. This week, the heartwarming independent film: ‘The Station Agent’ (2003).
SYNOPSIS: When his only friend dies, a man born with dwarfism moves to rural New Jersey to live a life of solitude, only to meet a chatty hot dog vendor and a woman dealing with her own personal loss.
Five reasons to watch the Peter Dinklage’s breakout role:
1) A warm hug of a film
Very few films manage to accomplish making an audience feel good without being cheesy, over-the-top, or downright false. ‘The Station Agent’ is guaranteed to make you feel good through its humane portrayal of treating others with dignity, and coming together to help each other in times of need.
2) Adult friendships
In the same way that ‘Stand By Me’ is the ultimate exploration of childhood friendship, I would argue that ‘The Station Agent’ is the best exploration of lonely people coming together and the importance of friendship in adult life. The formation of the central friendships happen in a natural and steady fashion. You’ll finish the film and want to contact friends you’ve maybe lost touch with over the years.
3) Introducing Peter Dinklage, Bobby Cannavale and Michelle Williams
When I first saw this, back in 2004, I had yet to see (or recognise, more accurately) any of the aforementioned actors. So watching them all in one great character study of a film was an eye-opener. Bobby Cannavale (later seen in ‘Boardwalk Empire’ and ‘Vinyl’) as the loveable Joe – bursting with energy throughout, bringing everyone together, loving every second of life, and caring deeply about treating people with respect – is responsible for the majority of the comic relief. Peter Dinklage (‘Game of Thrones’ and ‘Three Billboards’) in the lead, as Finbar McBride, a near-mute, outsider who wants to be left alone is played with great empathy throughout. Michelle Williams (‘Brokeback Mountain’, ‘Blue Valentine’, and ‘My Week with Marilyn’) only has a handful of scenes but delivers a performance of great range and occasional goofiness. A decade later and all three would go on to be some of the best recognised and admired actors of a generation (as Peter Dinklage’s Emmy win this week goes to show).
4) A dwarf’s perspective
Most films that approach a subject like race, gender, disability – anything considered “other” – usually succumb to preaching to the audience, pushing a message, or further alienating the subject; the thing that continues to stick with me about ‘The Station Agent’ is how it manages to depict the life of someone slightly different, though no-less-human, with subtlety and grace. The looks, the laughs, the tension when someone asks a direct question about what it’s like to be ____, these are all on show, but so too is the unexpected beauty of how the person is treated equally without comment – this is where the film really shines. If the film hints at treating all equally, it does it through small gestures, even lack of dialogue at times. There’s no grand speeches or music-swelling climax in which the protagonist gets what he wants, just a group of people who find what they need in the time and space quietly shared together.
5) The arrival of director Tom McCarthy
Formerly best known as a character actor, mostly on TV (standout role: the journalist caught in his own lie, in the final season of the exceptional TV show ‘The Wire’), the directorial debut of Tom McCarthy – the man who later went on to direct the oscar-winning ‘Spotlight’, as well as other minor gems ‘The Visitor’ and ‘Win Win’ – arrived confidently as a solid actor’s director with ‘The Station Agent’. Seeing the film for the first time announced a director of nuance and great compassion. It comes as no surprise to me that a decade later he would be collecting countless accolades for his work.
TRIVIA
-Director Tom McCarthy wrote the three main roles directly for the actors who ended up playing them. McCarthy has said in interviews that at the time of writing he was friends with Peter Dinklage, an acquaintance and colleague of Bobby Cannavale, and almost a complete stranger to Patricia Clarkson.
– St. Finbar (550-620) was a religious hermit. He founded a remote monastery that attracted so many people it eventually became the Irish city of Cork.
– All the artwork seen in Olivia Harris’ house was painted and provided by Jessalyn Gilsig, writer/director Tom McCarthy’s friend and co-star during their run on the TV series ‘Boston Public’.
– The train depot in the film still exists in Newfoundland, NJ. It is a popular spot for train fans to take pictures of the Susquehanna trains as they travel north through New Jersey.