Obviously, the only truly interesting thing about Where The Crawdads Sing is the absolutely bizarre connection between the plot of the film – or rather the book it’s based on – and an actual murder case that the book’s author, Delia Owens, is involved in, and still wanted for questioning. For those not in the know, someone connected to her family allegedly shot and killed a poacher in in Zambia back in 1995 (so…probably not the biggest loss in the world imho), and it was caught on camera for an ABC special. It’s a whole weird thing, and it’s hard not to think about it as you’re watching the film because it feels somewhat inspired by these events.
Anyhoo, set in 1969, the film follows a young woman named Kya (Daisy Edgar-Jones), who has been on her own and ostracized for most of her life because she lives outside a small North Carolina town in a marsh. She grew up dealing with a lot of struggles including abuse and family abandonment, but has managed to survive on her own. She has a best friend named Tate (Taylor John Smith) that she grows attached to, but life gets complicated, one thing leads to another, and she ultimately becomes the main suspect in the murder trial of a former fling named Chase (Harris Dickinson).
The film is told in two timelines, one where we see Kya grow up and digging into her relationship with Tate and eventually Chase, and the second being the actual trial where she is defended by Tom (David Strathairn) against a really judgmental town. The odds have always seemingly been stacked against Kya, so it’s easy to root for her, and being invested in her story. While I haven’t read the novel, it’s not hard to see why it may have resonated with people, having sold over 12 million copies since its debut back in 2018.
The book was adapted by screenwriter, Lucy Alibar, who is notable for co-writing 2012’s Beasts Of The Southern Wild, and you can see the connection pretty quick with some the more poetic flair given to Kya’s narration that pops in and out of the film. This is also the second feature from director, Olivia Newman, following her 2018 Netflix debut, First Match. Though I can’t speak to how this film is as an adaptation, I can say that it’s a fairly well made feature, with lots of fantastic location shooting, period detail, costumes, and set designs. It can feel quite immersive at times.
However, as a piece of storytelling, I think there is a lot to be desired. Much of this is interesting in theory, but the film is missing a certain energy, a certain grit. The film can often feel tasteful to a fault, and because of that, some of the bigger, more emotional, and melodramatic swings, don’t land as hard as they should. This should feel emotionally big, as big as the sweeping nature of its story, but it’s too respectable, to subdued. So, you have an interesting setup, followed by a long, mostly dull romance, and then you get back into the drama as the court case comes to its finale. If this was something that came out in the mid-90s, it would be so much more lurid and weird and fun, but this seems afraid, sometimes unwilling to go to that extreme, even if the story beats encourage it.
Daisy Edgar-Jones really is the saving grace of the film. She was terrific in Fresh earlier this year too, another film that didn’t wow me, even though she did. She manages to bring a lot of dimension to a character that is expressed largely internally, at least when it isn’t narrated. The way she presents herself, her physicality, it really brings this character to life. The other actors do perfectly fine work as well, Strathairn in particular can play a small town lawyer in his sleep, but this is ultimately her show, and if there’s one reason to recommend seeing this, it’s for her performance.
Though some of the words here seem harsh, when it’s all said and done, I don’t think Where The Crawdad Sings is a terrible movie, it’s just not a particularly engaging one. There are moments where I did find it quite affecting, again, mostly because of what Daisy Edgar-Jones brings to the table. I suppose one could try to parse out the themes about trauma, female survival, the nature of justice, but there’s so little *there* there, that it’s not really worth it, and I think that’s mostly by design. This is meant to be a simple but timeless tearjerker, and if your expectations are kept in check, you might find stuff to like here. It’s not without its merits, and I certainly don’t regret seeing it. It’s just not the kind of film that I would say inspires strong feelings one way or the other, which is pretty weird considering the controversy around it, but hey, sometimes truth is stranger than fiction.
Where The Crawdads Sing is now out in theaters.