Carey Mulligan as Jeanette in Wildlife

WILDLIFE
Directed by Paul Dano
Certificate 12
☆☆☆☆

RICHARD Ford (The Sports Writer, Independence Day, The Lay of the Land) has created some of the most intriguing novels on modern American life – making the minutiae of our times come alive.

Wildlife is an adaptation of his novel of the same name: starring Carey Mulligan and Jake Gyllenhaal, it tells the story of a family whose happiness seems to be built on shaky foundations.

Jerry (Gyllenhaal) and Jeanette (Mulligan) are the couple living in Montana. Jerry is a flighty soul, moving from one place to another as he seeks a job that will satisfy his urges for an all-American life as seen on TV.

When a wildfire flashes across the mountains near his home, he sees a way of finding a form of redemption and heads to help.

Meanwhile, at home, his wife finds the going tougher and tougher – and we watch the fall-out through the eyes of their son, Joe (Ed Oxenbould).

Mulligan, as ever, hits the target, and the Montana landscape provides a strong backdrop for the drama to unfold.