Middle of Nowhere

Before directing the acclaimed, Oscar-nominated Selma, Ava DuVernay made her breakthrough with this intimate American independent drama about a woman who puts her life and ambitions on hold to support her husband after he's sent to prison for an eight-year term. Ruby (Emayatzy Corinealdi) drops out of medical school and takes a nursing job so that she can be at home for daily calls from Derek (Omari Hardwick) and also make the two-hour bus ride from the Los Angeles suburbs to the prison every week. But more than just her career, Ruby has put her entire life in a holding pattern, a truth she refuses to acknowledge until an easygoing bus driver (David Oyelowo) engages in friendly but sincere flirtation and she realizes how much she's sacrificed. Corinealdi delivers a quietly expressive performance as a woman who initially does not realize her growing sense of malaise and loneliness. DuVernay avoids any of the expected dramatic revelations or charged confrontations, instead focusing on Ruby's evolution, while also making Derek a complicated, nuanced character—neither judging nor forgiving him as Ruby faces the reality of the cost of her commitment to his support. DuVernay won the Best Director award at Sundance, but the film itself was not widely distributed. Hopefully it will reach a wider audience on home video. Recommended. (S. Axmaker)