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‘Sovereign’

Briarcliff Entertainment

Directed by Christian Swegal

Starring Nick Offerman, Jacob Tremblay, Dennis Quaid, Thomas Mann, Martha Plimpton and Nancy Travis

Rated R

 

3 Stars

 

We all know funnyman Nick Offerman from his performance in the NBC sitcom, “Parks and Recreation.” He played a no-nonsense, meat-loving and self-sufficient authoritarian who felt that too many American citizens have become sheep being led to the slaughter.

Offerman’s new movie, “Sovereign,” takes that character as a starting point and then turns everything up to the max. He still plays a man striving to be the master of his own life, but in this performance, the man is radicalized and ready to explode. 

Do I need to mention that this is not a comedy, but rather a harrowing drama that has been seared into my memory because of the superb central performances and a few scenes of shocking violence.

Indeed, the movie begins with police radio announcements regarding an officer who’s been shot in the line of duty. We aren’t told anything about the officer or the assailant, but the opening prepares us for the violent clash to come.

We go back in time and meet Jerry (Offerman) who is an unemployed roofer about to lose his house to the bank. He is a member of the sovereign citizens movement and truly believes that the bank has no right to take a man’s home. He takes umbrage at many of the laws and regulations that govern our society. It leads him into inevitable conflict with law enforcement over things like driving without a license, gun ownership and keeping his son out of school.

That son, Joe, is played by Jacob Tremblay, who is at the age where he is still devoted to his father, but also starting to recognize that dad might have some crazy ideas. We can see that he would like nothing more than to attend school with his peers, but he feels trapped by his father’s radical ideas and tendency to violence.

We’ve already been given a promise of violence in the film’s opening moments, but it doesn’t prepare you for how shocking that violence will be when it finally erupts. What’s more, it’s not the only harrowing sequence in the movie.

Credit Offerman for making these scenes so powerful, but also for giving us a peak into the forces that are pushing him to the edge. It’s a riveting character study of a man trying to instill Godly values in his son, but he’s struggling because he’s being humiliated and demasculinized at every turn by those in power.

Running along side this story, we meet the local police chief (Dennis Quaid) who is also trying to impart wisdom to his son (Thomas Mann), a cadet on the local police force. He is also a man with strong opinions, which draws his family into conflict with Jerry and Joe.

This meaty drama has been written and directed by Christian Swegal, making his feature debut here. It’s a compelling drama with fascinating characters and a nice exploration of the forces driving some Americans into radical movements. You can tell that I’m not alone in this assessment given the talented supporting cast that signed up for the project—Martha Plimpton and Nancy Travis being the most notable names on that list.

The bottom line is that “Sovereign” is a shocking movie that has some unique insights into our nation’s current political divide. It features a trio of solid performances and a young director showing that he understands how to turn up the tension in this very good dramatic thriller.

“Sovereign” is currently playing in select theaters, but available to rent on several home streaming services.

 

Movie reviews by Sean, “The Movie Guy,” are published each week in The Port Arthur News and the Orange Leader. Sean welcomes your comments via email at sean@seanthemovieguy.com You can get more of Sean’s reviews by subscribing to the 2 Movie Guys podcast.