Homecoming

Colour, BETA
USA, 2004, 104 min
Section: Forum of Independents

Synopsis

Newport, Oregon. Jeff and his wife Mattie are trying to make ends meet in the coastal town where they live. One son, Chris, is unemployed. The other, Steve, is away serving in the army and has been sent to Iraq. Chris is dumped by his girlfriend. What’s more, he has serious problems with Jeff, who is, as we discover, not his real father. He visits a therapist, who makes things even worse by seducing him. To top it all, Jeff’s and Mattie’s worst fears come true: Steve comes back in a “transfer tube”, to be buried at home. A serious, tragic and radically realistic film about an ordinary American family who are deeply affected by the political and economic changes in the USA after 9/11. Having lived and worked for more than 10 years outside the USA, Jon Jost, one of the few truly independent filmmakers around, returned home to record the effects of recent developments on ordinary people. He investigates the vulnerable, often unseen side to the superpower called America.

About the director

Jon Jost (b. 1943, Chicago) grew up in Georgia, Japan, Italy, Germany and Virginia. After he was kicked out of university, he started making 16mm films. In 1965, Jost was imprisoned for 2 years for refusing to do his military service. After his release, he became politically active. He has been making films for 41 years. His first feature was Speaking Directly (1973). In 1992 he was chosen as one of “The Magnificent Seven”, seven independent directors whose portraits were shown in the Forum of Independents at Karlovy Vary (screened films: Bell Diamond, 1985, Sure Fire, 1990, All the Vermeers in New York, 1990). Other films screened at Karlovy Vary:  Uno a te, uno a me, uno a Raffaele, and Frame Up, 1995. Jost has been focusing on DVD film production since 1996.