Themes: Fathers and Daughters, Culture Clash, Sexual Awakening
Main Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis, Camilla Belle, Catherine Keener, Beau Bridges, Jason Lee
Release Year: 2004
Country: US
Run Time: 111 minutes
MPAA Rating: R
Plot
A young woman kept at arm's length from the world finds it suddenly appearing on her doorstep in this drama. In the 1960s, Jack (Daniel Day-Lewis) was a political radical and environmental activist who organized a self-sustaining commune on a small island off the East Coast as an alternative to what he saw as an ugly and destructive way of life. In 1986, the commune is down to two members -- Jack and Rose (Camilla Belle), his 16-year-old daughter from a marriage that ended with his wife's death. Educated by her father and isolated from "corrupting" outside influences, Rose is very close to her father, and keeps a close eye on his emotional needs as well as his health, which has been compromised by heart disease. Jack has an on-and-off relationship with Kathleen (Catherine Keener), a divorced mother of two teenage boys who lives on the mainland, and one day to Rose's great surprise, Jack announces that Kathleen and her boys will be moving in with them. Startled and betrayed by Kathleen's arrival, Rose is also disoriented by the sudden presence of outside influences and a sudden rush of adolescent lust. Rose first attempts to seduce sweet but stocky Rodney (Ryan McDonald), who opts instead to cut her long hair; she then takes up with moody Thaddius (Paul Dano), who takes her virginity. Before long, emotional war breaks out in the household with Rose battling Jack on all fronts; Jack, meanwhile, is taking a more direct tack on dealing with a developer (Beau Bridges) putting up buildings on nearby wetlands, attempting to chase him off with a shotgun. The Ballad of Jack & Rose was written and directed by Rebecca Miller, whose husband is leading man Daniel Day-Lewis and whose father was playwright Arthur Miller. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
Pierre Rovira - Art Director, Cindy Tolan - Casting, Melissa M. Marr - Co-producer, Jennifer Von Mayrhauser - Costume Designer, John M. Tyson - First Assistant Director, Rebecca Miller - Director, Sabine Hoffman - Editor, Caroline Kaplan - Executive Producer, Graham King - Executive Producer, Jonathan Sehring - Executive Producer, Michael Rohatyn - Composer (Music Score), Mark Ricker - Production Designer, Ellen Kuras - Cinematographer, Lemore Syvan - Producer, Shawn Holden - Sound/Sound Designer, Rebecca Miller - Screenwriter
Jack Slavin (Daniel Day-Lewis), an aging Scotsman with a heart condition, lives alone with his teenage daughter, Rose (Camilla Belle), on a small island in the remains of what was once a thriving hippiecommune. Rose has been home schooled since the age of 11. Rose adores her father and is content with their simple existence, but Jack begins to suspect that her intense feelings for him are more than a daughter's love for her father. In an attempt to end her isolation, Jack persuades his girlfriend, Kathleen (Catherine Keener), and her two sons to move in with them.
Rose is displeased with this new "experiment" and sees Kathleen as an intruder. She attempts to rebel against Jack and Kathleen in a variety of increasingly disturbing ways: she has her hair cut short, fires a loaded gun into Jack and Kathleen's bedroom, and releases a copperhead snake to scare Kathleen. Finally, she loses her virginity to Kathleen's younger son Thaddius (Paul Dano), and displays a blood-stained sheet on a clothesline. Despite this outrageous behavior, Rose seems to form a genuine connection with Rodney (Ryan McDonald), Kathleen's sensitive, overweight son.
As Jack's health declines, he becomes more aware of how he has "failed" to prepare Rose for a future without him, and is forced to face his complicated feelings for his own daughter. When a fight over Rose breaks out between Jack and Thaddius, Rose pushes Thaddius out of a window, severely injuring him; with that, Kathleen's relationship with Jack ends and her family moves out, and Jack agrees to give back Kathleen a "severance" of $20,000. Jack and Rose are alone again for the final days of Jack's life. While lying beside each other, Jack and Rose share an incestuous kiss, that is ambiguously portrayed as either reality or Jack's "nightmare". Jack pulls away, asking both her and God to forgive him, but Rose sees nothing shameful in their feelings. After his death, Rose sets fire to their house, intending to die as well, but remembers her promise to "live" for Jack and escapes by boat. Rose then leaves the island and moves to a commune in Vermont to continue in the lifestyle taught by her father.
The film was released on March 23, 2005, grossing $59,459 in its opening weekend, in 4 theaters. The highest position it reached was during its second week of release, grossing $135,100, and the lowest position it reached was at its last week of release, grossing $406. Its widest release was 74 theaters. The film grossed $712,275 domestically and just $916,051 worldwide.
DVD
The film was released on DVD on August 16, 2005. The DVD contained commentary with director and writer Rebecca Miller and the making of The Ballad of Jack and Rose.
