Writer-director Nicole Riegel’s “Holler,” shot in beautifully grainy 16mm, has a few very pronounced influences at its disposal. The first is Barbara Loden’s similarly shot 1970 indie classic “Wanda”; the second, and more pronounced film, is Debra Granik’s “Winter’s Bone.” With those two films firmly set as its blueprint, Riegel sadly can’t match the artistic bar that has been set. Taking place in Southern Ohio, where a sort of post-industrial world is slowly being shaped and as the last major plant that employed hundreds of the residents closes down, we meet Ruth Avery (Jessica Barden), a high school senior dreaming of college. Much like “Winter’s Bone,” and countless other indies we’ve seen before, Ruth is a teenage girl that had to rapidly grow into adulthood, having to take care of herself due to having an opioid-addicted mother. Older brother Blaze (Gus Halper) works hard as well, taking any day-labor jobs that pop up, just so he can save enough money for Ruth to attend college. “Holler” was supposed to world premiere at last year’s COVID-cancelled SXSW Film Festival only to finally screen at TIFF a few months later. The end result is a predictable and none-too-interesting narrative that is well-versed in the token American indie drama’s knack for “misery porn.” This is the kind of film that may have been praised to the high heavens 10 years ago, now it’s just plain generic.
SCORE: C
There are a few laughs, mostly at the start, and occasional visual treats, including a jaw-dropping cave setting in the final stretch, but the movie increasingly feels like an experiment in narrative improvisation.