Night Moves. 2013. USA. Directed by Kelly Reichardt. Screenplay by Jonathan Raymond, Reichardt. With Jesse Eisenberg, Dakota Fanning, Peter Sarsgaard. DCP. 112 min.
The environmental thriller Night Moves, about a trio of eco-terrorists deep into a plot to blow up an Oregon hydroelectric dam, represents a monumental shift in Kelly Reichardt’s filmography. Each protagonist has a private backstory—dropout, trust-fund baby, ex-military—that tumbles out in the quiet moments of the film. As in many of Reichardt’s films, the primordial, verdant Oregon landscape often acts as a hushed character in the narrative.