Publisher: Peter McGinn June 23, 2021
Dirt Road to Lafayette is a low key film about grief, and using music to work through it. It follows teenager Murdo as he travels from Scotland to Alabama following the death of his mother. Murdo plays the accordion, but the tragic disruption in his life has caused him to set it aside for a while. It starts out as a sort of road movie, then, before settling down a bit. During a lull in the trip by bus to Alabama, Murdo hears accordion music being played. He seeks it out and finds Queen Monzee-ay, a regionally well-known cajun singer performing. He gets to know her and she invites him to perform with her in an upcoming event. Her attention and his experience with her people awakens Murdo's interest in his music. This causes a slight rift between him and his father, who out of good intentions is perhaps a bit controlling of his son. I really enjoyed this movie. The story is strong and told simply. No flashbacks or dream sequences - what we get is a drama about grief and family, strong characters in an ensemble cast, and a lot of music. It doesn't hurt that I really enjoy Cajun music. If I could suggest anything, I would like to have seen a bit more conversation between father and son. There is a lot of silent staring and halting tidbits which do convey their sense of loss. But as someone who lost my father and a brother at a young age, and whose family didn't talk a lot about it either, I felt I could almost have written some strong scenes of dialogue to show more character growth. But that is a minor observation. I would recommend the film to anyone, as long as they also enjoy or at least tolerate the music.