By Chris Tait
One could say that normalcy is the antithesis to excitment, and it can be argued that something that is deemed “normal” makes for a very poor and boring film-going experience… normally.
All the residents in Newfoundland, a small town in New Jersey, prefer separation, which is not a problem because they’re in the middle of nowhere.
The Station Agent is the tale of a very normal Newfoundland guy, who lives a very normal life, and does very little out of the ordinary. The problem: Finbar McBride (Peter Dinklage) is not what most people would perceive as normal if they were to look at him or explore his hobbies. He is about 4ïz
One day his boss, an older man who compulsively smokes big, thick cigars, collapses and Fin inherits the man’s small property in Newfoundland. The store closes down and is sold and the earnings help Fin retire. He decides to move out to his newly acquired land with his few possessions.
Upon arriving, Fin discovers an old train station and a few train cars atop his property, providing a place for him to dock his passions in his early, but unfortunate, retirement. He winds up befriending a harassing hot dog vendor and a divorced, accident-prone woman.
In this case, normalcy is the key to this film’s brilliance.
Fin is not perceived by the people around him as a regular kind of guy, but as a little man about half everyone else’s size. The irony of it all is that he’s really just a simple, quiet, boring (as he himself puts it) guy. The comedic elements are simple and subtle, but presented in a way that makes them hilarious.
There is definitely something extraordinary about this film, having stolen the glory at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival, where it was awarded Best Drama, Best Screenplay and Best Performance.
The laughs in this film are abrupt and cleverly simple. It’s a thoughtful view of one man’s lonely life and how he found happiness. For fear of being sickeningly cliched, this is the feel-good movie of the year.
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