'Sovereign' review: Jacob Tremblay & Nick Offerman push back until they get pushed back

Briarcliff Entertainment

If anyone asks, this movie is not for commercial use; it's a private way of making art. Sovereign, which is writer-director Christian Swegal's feature debut in the latter role, twists and reimagines some real-life events (that you should look into after seeing the film, in my opinion, if you wish to do so) as it follows an Arkansan father-son duo, Jerry (Nick Offerman) and Joseph Kane (Jacob Tremblay). They are followers of the sovereign citizen movement, which distrusts and disregards the oversight of the United States government, whether that extends to taxes, housing, laws or whatever. While Joseph is maybe starting to question their worldviews, Jerry travels the country doing seminars and outreach. Joseph ends up joining him on these trips, but Jerry's criminal activity and teachings slowly put them on a collision course with another father-son duo, police chief Jim Bouchart (Dennis Quaid) and rookie cop Adam (Thomas Mann).

You'd be forgiven if Sovereign doesn't call your name initially seeing how based on the posters (especially that truly ugly one with floating bodies; what has happened to art of movie posters in recent years in general is a travesty) and other materials, it reeks of similar energy to all those gun-toting geezer teasers with directorial dysfunction, dumped in VOD garbage bins. Fortunately, there's a more powerful engine to be found if you look under the hood as Swegal has scripted a compact, clever and rather inquisitive drama thriller that tackles challenges that come with poverty, indoctrination, dangerous beliefs and, yes, even reliance on guns. Some might also describe it as a crime story, and there's a little bit of that baked in but the film isn't really about that until towards the very end. Entirely absent is the action element that the bang-bang-shoot-shoot materials would suggest, just a heads-up.

The writing, in perfect harmony with the two central performances, treats you like a smart adult and leaves you a little bit of grey as well in the midst of examining what's right and wrong, what's intentional and what isn't. There's a non-judgmental, documentary-like feel to how it portrays the Kanes, capturing the rambling nonsense that Jerry spouts nonstop but finding humanity in the way that Joseph observes the world around himself. To someone unfamiliar with these sorts of beliefs, like yours truly, there's enough space between the writer and their characters to make up your own mind. This is the case even if the movie handles Joseph with kid gloves from time to time.

It's so effective in fact that you do get lost in the sauce with these people because Offerman delivers every single line like he wholeheartedly believes every word that comes out of his mouth, interpreting Jerry's desperation and stubbornness deftly, oftentimes like he's a deer in the headlights except this deer is a bullshit salesman and the headlights are a bullshit detector. Tremblay opts for more subtlety since Joseph is starting to build his own identity for the first time, but the actor wears the same amount of sincerity on his body as Offerman, which is why the inevitable tragedy feels true for his character. It's a great mix of a dad's delusion and child's curiosity on their own collision course.

There's also an interesting question to be posed about whether this story will count as "copaganda" considering the fully invented parallels and emotional manipulation (mind you, that isn't always a bad thing in fiction) when it comes to the Bouchart family members' arcs. Food for thought. Another question relates to the film's timeliness because this sort of movement preys on desperate, usually financially struggling folks who sometimes have been fed a diet of conspiracies and hatred, or sometimes have been bamboozled by a populist message before all those promises get broken and those people get burned. Fascism feeds first and foremost on those who are the weakest and need support from others, like minorities and poor people, and in today's United States of America, it's a scarily relevant and urgent issue. And when they're brainwashed to rely on guns, it becomes a dangerous issue, like the movement's history proves.

Swegal and his collaborators, such as cinematographer Dustin Lane, still have quite a bit of room to improve as visual storytellers, exemplified by the blocking, compositions and staging, although a few haunting cues from composer James McAlister and an appropriately gloomy colour palette compensate for some of it. When it comes to Sovereign's main flaws, editor David Henry and the helmer perhaps didn't figure out if they want to do three, four or five acts, a typical crime drama, a proper slow burn, or create a crescendo. Flow-wise, the film is stuck in no-man's-land because it tries to do a little bit of everything in post—partly because the finale is an action set piece for the most part, partly because of the Bouchart family storyline, which bafflingly begins and concludes the film even though it's iffy at best. Knowing the real story now, slow burns and crescendos might've been the best options if you want to end on a tragic gut punch.

Taking everything into account, this is a neat, intelligent narrative, headlined by great performances from Offerman and Tremblay, and it's a strong debut for Swegal in the director's chair. Plus, a piece of art that makes you go on a Wikipedia deep dive and look up real footage afterwards is always worth your time.

Smileys: Screenplay, Nick Offerman, story, Jacob Tremblay

Frowneys: Editing

Look, when we talk about shooting your shot, it should only be about being brave enough to finally talk to your crush.

4.0/5

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