Causeway – Film Review

Lynsey, a U.S. soldier, experiences a traumatic brain injury during her tour in Afghanistan which forces her to return home. She struggles to return to her daily life with her mother as she waits for her eventual redeployment.

There are few movies released in 2022 that had such a strong sense of understanding, care, and compassion that was ever-so-present the way it was in Lila Neugebauer‘s Causeway – a psychological drama film unlike any I’ve seen in quite a long time. It’s not only an excellently subtle character study that explores themes such as grief and trauma, but it’s also one of the best movies of the year.

From its opening scene alone, we understand that Jennifer Lawrence‘s character Lynsey has experienced a traumatic brain injury that was caused by an IED explosion during her tour in Afghanistan. This has forced her to return home to New Orleans and live a “normal” lifestyle. But she finds that she cannot even do simple things anymore because it brings her trauma.

There’s a heartbreaking scene early on in which Lynsey is driving a car and she starts to panic and has to pull over to the side of the road. She’s simply not able to drive anymore because of her injury. Another emotional scene sees Lynsey eating a snow cone with a new friend, but she cannot even do that.

A lot of Lynsey’s life has been shattered due to the incident, and Causeway serves as a journey through her life and the steps that she must make in order to finally heal, slowly but surely. Lynsey would much rather be back in Afghanistan but it’s simply not possible for her to do so. It’s painful to watch a woman live her life and be in constant misery.

We want her to get better, but it’s not so easy. Screenwriters Ottessa Moshfegh, Luke Goebel, and Elizabeth Sanders penned something truly special here. I can’t even tell you the last time I saw a movie so understanding and caring about these kinds of topics. Sometimes if a movie tackles grief and trauma head-on, it can end up being a little too forced or it can come across as way too carefree.

But not Causeway. It’s an extremely sharply written film that will capture your attention right away and refuse to let go of its grip on you. Lawrence delivers one of the best performances of her career here. It’s one of those performances where all you need to do is simply look the person in the eyes and you’ll see their story.

Brian Tyree Henry is also fantastic as James Aucoin, who essentially serves as the love interest of this story. At first, I didn’t enjoy the relationship between James and Lysney as it felt incredibly forced and unnatural. But as the film progressed and I saw where things were going, I found myself swept up by it all.

Sadly, though, Causeway does have a bafflingly abrupt ending that doesn’t satisfy like it should have. It’s one of those endings where you’ll find yourself staring at the screen as the end credits roll, going “huh?” There definitely should’ve been a few extra scenes at the end and it would’ve made for a more impactful ending than the one we got.

But that still doesn’t take away from the fact that Causeway is an excellent psychological drama that wonderfully explores important themes in a powerful way. If you missed this one in theatres, make sure to check it out now because you’re in for a treat.

Lila Neugebauer’s Causeway is a powerful, emotional film that excellently explores complex themes with a strong sense of compassion and understanding.