Once Upon A River Review: A Beautiful, Flowing Coming of Age

Release date: October 2, 2020
Running time: 92 minutes
Starring: Kenadi DelaCerna, John Ashton, Tatanka Means 

Margo Crane (DelaCerna)'s odyssey on the Stark River introduces her to a world filled with wonders and dangers.  Margo is forced to flee her hometown and survive on her own as a young woman in a hostile area.  She experiences life, hardship, sadness, and kindness as she makes her way down the river and tries to reunite with her estranged mother.

First and foremost, Once Upon a River is a beautiful film.  It is set in Oklahoma in a natural landscape with beautiful nature, wildlife, and the ever present river.  It is a sight to see and one that will intrigue you with it's quiet, thoughtful beauty.  But the film isn't just aesthetically pleasing for the eyes.  Once Upon a River also has wonderful music throughout that does a great job of accentuating the beautiful scenery.  It combines to form a beautiful canvas to paint this river tale.  

Once Upon a River is a coming of age film through and through.  Margo goes through a lot of experiences in her journey and grows as a person throughout.  She goes through some overwhelming circumstances at the start, but this forces her onto the river where she starts to find herself.  Even the painful experiences--and there are some experiences that might be tough for some to watch--on the river and her journey help to steel her resolve and find her purpose.  Along the way she meets many people who both help and hurt her, but most importantly, show her that she can be herself and forge her own path.  It's great to see a strong female lead who can make mistakes and learn from them, and ultimately find her own strength and purpose.  The film has a lot of similarities to Winter's Bone, but with a softer tone and less dire circumstances.  And the film features a wonderful cast of varied characters.  No two people that Margo meets on the river are the same, and they all impact and influence Margo in some way.  And this film and its characters feature a good amount of diversity, from the strong minority lead to many of the characters that you meet along the way.  This film is a picturesque journey of emotion, pain, love, and growth.  And the film concludes this entire journey with a satisfying, fitting ending that highlights just how far Margo has come. 

Once Upon A River is a beautiful coming of age film with wonderful cinematography and sound, a nuanced strong female lead, and a story with great pace and flow.

Watch it.

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Once Upon a River is playing in virtual cinemas across the country.  For more information and for showtimes click here.