45365

The title is the zip code for the middle-American town of Sydney, Ohio (population, 20000), the hometown of brothers Bill and Turner Ross, who, with their debut feature, present an elegiac portrait of goings-on there and a celebration of everyday life, be it mundane or profound. Filmed over the course of a nine month period, the camera follows events at the county fair, at the radio station, on a judge’s re-election campaign, with the football team, at a care home, in the church, at the barbershop and elsewhere, presenting fascinating and engaging images of modern Americana, while stories about the relationships between lovers, between fathers and sons, and between cops and offenders, emerge almost incidentally. At turns hauntingly eerie and frequently humorous, 45365 is a patient, inquisitive and non-judgemental study of community, lives and landscape, a beautifully simple and affecting film, one that is deeply astute and artistic, at times reminiscent of, and as insightful as, a William Eggleston photograph or an Edward Hopper painting. This strikingly original documentary took the jury prize at this year’s SXSW Film Festival. —bfi