Cousin Countin' Rednecks

Bernie (2011)
directed by Richard Linklater
rating: 4 out of 5 cravats
watched on Tubi

There is no mention of sports at all in this movie, which to me is a testament to Linklater's inherent curiosity about Texas as a place beyond just the repository for his own memories and lived experience. His affection for 1997 slice-of-life East Texas masterpiece Hands On a Hardbody extends to casting himself in a cameo as the fastest deadbeat dad on the lot, but the filtered afternoon light through the pines as the camera cranes into the scene is beautiful—as is his loyalty to the great Sonny Carl Davis (named just plain "Sonny Davis" as he jokes through the credits about his St. Augustine neighbors "digging a hole in the backyard" to cook their dinner). Sometimes Linklater's projects completely baffle me, and sometimes there's no one better.