As Mark introduced the screening of Rose of Nevada in front of a sold out audience at Plymouth Arts Cinema, he mentioned it was his 37th such introduction, with his last to happen the next day at Dartington. If he was tired, he didn’t show it, and stayed with the audience for the first five minutes or so to check the sound levels.
Mark Jenkin’s Rose of Nevada is a triumph that further cements his status as one of Britain’s most experimental and singular cinematic voices. The film follows two young men—the fiercely grounded Nick (George MacKay, 1917) and the drifter Liam (Callum Turner, Eternity)—who join the crew of the titular fishing vessel, Rose of Nevada, that has just mysteriously bobbed back into the harbor after being lost at sea for three decades. When the men return ashore from their maiden voyage, they’ve left the food-bank-reliant 2020s and arrived at the thriving, bustling village of 1993. What unfolds is an existential displacement horror story. MacKay is phenomenal, his taut, anxious energy perfectly conveying the nightmare of a man marooned in the past, agonisingly separated from his young family. Conversely, Turner brings a chilling nonchalance to Liam, who seamlessly slides into a stolen life. Ably supported by Mary Woodvine (Enys Men) and Rosalind Eleazar (Slow Horses), Rose of Nevada is a slow burn of a film that really gets under your skin – be it the sound design (I’ve personally never been as freaked out with sound in a film since I watched Eraserhead at 17), or its themes of poverty, desolation of community, grief and mental health of fishermen.
The Q&A after was enlightening; Mark was on good form, he talked about the effects of lockdown and the inception of Nevada, workshopped with his partner Mary Woodvine (who was also in attendance), he talked about his sound process, how he loads and unloads his camera and gave some insights into the name Rose of Nevada.
After the film Mark and Mary hung around for a while, signed posters and were absolutely brilliant.
Rose of Nevada is screening at Plymouth Arts Cinema from the 8th – 14th May.
Reviewed by Johnny Mains
Johnny Mains is an award-winning editor and author who has written liner notes for the BFI, Arrow Video and Indicator.
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