Debra Granik avoids telling us what happened to the father (Ben Foster) of Leave No Trace's main character. He's haunted and deeply troubled, but we know next to nothing about this. This is a deft avoidance of sentimentality and bad exposition, but this is a directorial dodge, not a directorial solution, and it stands in the way of the audience's understanding of and sympathy with Ben Foster's character.
But there is so much good in the movie. Thomasin McKenzie is flat out brilliant. The photography is gorgeous. Dale Dickey appears in a large role. And this is a portrait of America I hadn't known I needed.
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