Stationary

An interview I read not long ago with Peter Dinklage (currently commanding the screen as Tyrion on Game of Thrones) made me interested to see the movie that brought him his first taste of fame, The Station Agent. This low-budget independent film wasn't seen by a wide audience, but was seen by enough people in the industry that Dinklage began to see more parts coming his way.

The movie itself centers around Dinklage's character, a withdrawn and quiet dwarf who inherits a rundown and defunct train station on a faraway property when his friend, owner of the model train store where he works, dies. He relocates to live in the decaying building, making the acquaintance of a handful of interesting characters in the tiny town.

It's hard to say much more about the plot than that, as I don't believe there really is much more to the plot than that. This is not a film driven by narrative, but by character. Not much happens, but what little there is, the film is more concerned with who it happens to.

Ordinarily, I'd find this kind of movie a rather dull affair. And truthfully, I didn't find it wonderful. But it isn't quite boring either, and even has a handful of oddly compelling scenes. And the reason is the exceptional cast.

Dinklage is a wonderful lead, putting up an inscrutable exterior to others while teeming with constrained emotion beneath the service. His interactions in the film are primarily with two others. One is a man trying to maintain his happy-go-lucky outlook on life while dealing with an ailing father; he's played by Bobby Canavale with fun energy to serve as a polar opposite to Dinklage's reserve. The other is a woman in a rocky separation with her husband; she's played by the wonderful Patricia Clarkson, who moves back and forth along an emotional continuum between the two throughout the film.

There are smaller supporting roles filled by mostly unrecognizable faces (though you may know Michelle Williams and John Slattery), but even the unknowns are just the perfect tone in this quirky setting. Together, it all weaves a poetic tapestry. The film has more of a tone than a message, is more a slice of life than a narrative.

It's a well made movie -- just not a movie that's entirely my cup of tea. I'd call it a B-. If you enjoy movies with an almost British sensibility of restrained "being," this is probably for you. The rest of you probably should check it out only if you're a fan of one of the main actors.