X
- 2019
- TV-MA
- ARRAY Releasing
- 1 h 17 m
- 2019
- TV-MA
- ARRAY Releasing
- 1 h 17 m
Summary Among the cane fields of rural Louisiana, an aging mother struggles between her religious convictions and the love of her son in this debut drama from 19-year-old filmmaker Phillip Youmans, who shot the film while still in high school.
Directed By: Phillip Youmans
Written By: Phillip Youmans
- 2019
- TV-MA
- ARRAY Releasing
- 1 h 17 m
- 2019
- TV-MA
- ARRAY Releasing
- 1 h 17 m
Burning Cane
74
3.8
Summary Among the cane fields of rural Louisiana, an aging mother struggles between her religious convictions and the love of her son in this debut drama from 19-year-old filmmaker Phillip Youmans, who shot the film while still in high school.
Directed By: Phillip Youmans
Written By: Phillip Youmans
Top Cast
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 14 Critic Reviews
74
93% Positive
13 Reviews
13 Reviews
7% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
Metascore
Generally Favorable
Based on 14 Critic Reviews
74
93% Positive
13 Reviews
13 Reviews
7% Mixed
1 Review
1 Review
0% Negative
0 Reviews
0 Reviews
God is destined to forever be a complicated subject for most mortals, yet there’s no question this film has made me a believer in the boundless artistic potential of its creator.
Youmans’ poetic wade into rural black Louisiana, and the private realms of the faithful and faltering across three generations, is the kind of boldly off-road and unapologetically arty family drama that makes one sit up and take notice.
Burning Cane doesn’t resolve things as much as it makes poetry of them, right from its opening shot of the radiant beams of the sun shining upon the drifting smoke of a smoldering sugarcane field. Sometimes it seems as if there’s no escape from the stain of sin.
The restraint with which Youmans characterizes is refreshing, but the performances can also feel diminished by inscrutable elements, whether that’s missing narrative context or simply parts of scenes that are simply hard to see or hear entirely. Still, Burning Cane would be an impressive debut at any age, showing a distinct style, a suggestive eye for setting and detail, and an admirable willingness to experiment.
It’s a movie of minor fascinations and seductions; it exerts the pull of a natural-born filmmaker’s eye.
It takes more than simply celebrating rural life and marveling at nature to make someone the next David Gordon Green, let alone the next Terrence Malick. While Yeomans inarguably finds something significant in the slow pace of small towns, the power of narration and the jolt of handheld cinematography, exactly what that is isn’t always clear. In fact, sometimes it’s literally unclear; shots slip out of focus, and some close-ups are so poorly lit the characters’ features disappear.
Youmans ultimately grapples with several tough themes that center the black Baptist South in a way that is rarely seen on screen. Even so, the inept editing and screenplay ultimately bring down Burning Cane.
User Score
Generally Unfavorable
Based on 5 User Ratings
3.8
20% Positive
1 Rating
1 Rating
20% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
60% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
User Score
Generally Unfavorable
Based on 5 User Ratings
3.8
20% Positive
1 Rating
1 Rating
20% Mixed
1 Rating
1 Rating
60% Negative
3 Ratings
3 Ratings
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