Omaha: John Magaro Puts on a False Happy-Face for the Kids in this Reality-Based Drama

By Karen Gordon

Rating: B 

From a story point of view, Omaha is a slight film but one that punches way above its weight.

Much of that has to do with the performance of actor John Magaro (Past Lives, September 5), whose quiet presence gives the film more than just emotional ballast. His subtle performance also opens doors to issues like fatherhood and male grief.

It’s early morning. As the film begins, Dad (Magaro) is loading his still-sleeping son Charlie (Wyatt Solis) — who seems to be about five years old — into the car. Next, he wakes up nine-year-old Ella (Molly Belle Wright) and asks her to gather some things.

John Magaro, Wyatt Solis and Molly Belle Wright.

Clues to what’s happening come in small ways. Ella’s first choice is a picture of her mom, and we understand that the children’s mother, Dad’s wife, has died.

Outside there’s a sheriff waiting. We see what are likely eviction notices taped to the front door of the house. We're getting the picture that the state of things for this family is precarious.

Dad is doing his best to be light, but already we can feel the emotional heaviness that he’s doing his best to manage.

The kids and the dog Rex are loaded into the car, but it won't start. To get it going, Dad and Ella get out and push. Things aren't good. And soon, we see that Dad only has cash and not much of it.

The kids are curious, but Dad doesn't tell them what’s going on, why they're travelling or where they're going. They guess: are they going to Disneyland? Are they moving? As the film goes on, we find out that they're headed to Nebraska, and then to Omaha, but the reasons for those destinations aren't clear until the last minutes of the film.

Dad is keeping things light for the kids, but there is an air of heaviness hanging over him.

Charlie’s little enough that he’s just going with it. It’s different for Ella. She’s both protective of her little brother and emotionally tuned to her father.

She’s watchful and serious at times, and in a wonderful performance by Wright, she gives us the sense that she is wiser than her years.  The connection between Magaro and the two young actors is seamless.

The plot isn't much deeper than that.  It’s a road trip, and like a lot of especially American indie films, first-time feature director Cole Webley lets everything breathe, and instead of leaning heavily into foreshadowing, spends time building atmosphere. 

Images of the road. The kids playing with a kite in the salt flats. Dad watching.  All this is enhanced by the cinematography of Paul Meyers, in his feature film debut, and a lovely soundtrack by Christopher Bear (Past Lives).

It could be argued that the film is padded out beyond what it needs to be with these scenes. But Webley, working from a screenplay by Robert Machoian (The Killing of Two Lovers), is weaving us into the lives of these three, and building a sense of anticipation and tension in small ways.

A lot of the credit goes to his cast who do beautiful work here.  Not very much happens over the course of the film, but long before the end, we not only see the way this family relates, but we feel it.

The emotion is what carries the film, and it is affecting, especially thanks to Magaro’s thoughtful work which draws incredible compassion to the themes of the film though it is arguably too thin in terms of background.

And so, the film falters at the end by aiming to add context to the story, which is inspired by a real-life situation. After weaving us into something emotional and human, it feels a bit jarring, like an explanation of something that doesn't need an explanation.

Omaha. Directed by Cole Webley, written by Robert Machoian. Starring John Magaro, Molly Belle Wright, and Wyatt Solis. In theatres May 8.