By John Corrado
Named for the Jonathan Edwards country song, which gives you some idea of the tone the film is going for, Carolina Caroline is the story of Caroline (Samara Weaving), a Texas girl looking for a way out of her dead end town. She finds it in a drifter con man (Kyle Gallner) that she first meets pulling his signature con at the gas station; tricking the cashier into giving him extra change. The two soon hit the road together, increasing the scope of their swindles.
Director Adam Carter Rehmeier finds a rhythm in the scenes of them stealing and making love, but walls inevitably start closing in on our star-crossed lovers. If the film feels derivative of countless other crime movies (it’s overt homage to Bonnie and Clyde), the film finds its own enjoyable beats thanks to the strong performances of Weaving and Gallner, and the wistful country music soundtrack that gives everything a slightly melancholic feel.
Tom Dean’s script features some enjoyable dialogue about human nature, namely how Gallner’s character has taught himself to exploit it. Caroline dreams of going to South Carolina, in search of answers about herself. At one point, she muses if they are good people pretending to be bad, or bad people pretending to be good. It’s a question that lingers throughout the film as we become wrapped up in the palpable chemistry between Weaving and Gallner, despite their characters breaking the law in increasingly morally questionable ways.
In addition to Weaving and Gallner, veteran character actress Kyra Sedgwick also appears, making the most of what becomes one of those memorable single scene appearances. The story itself doesn’t exactly break any new ground, but Carolina Caroline is still a thoroughly enjoyable and well-acted addition to the Americana canon of crime road movies.
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