Downtown Owl

Searching for a break from her cosmopolitan life in Milwaukee, Julia Rabia (Lily Rabe), arrives in the closeknit Reagan-era town of Owl, North Dakota for a one-semester high school teaching job. But when the small town turns out to be a wonderland of second-string poets, smoldering Marlboro Men, and a social hierarchy that echoes high school, Julia doesn’t know if she’s come to town to get away from home or to find it.

This dark dramedy from the Great Plains from husband-and-wife directors Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater is based on the novel by Chuck Klosterman.

“Extremely entertaining, and it should be praised for being a breezy entry into a genre that all too often takes itself too seriously. Still, the movie is not without its flaws, and a confusing tonal shift in the final act may leave viewers scratching their heads.” ~Sean Boelman, Disappointment Media

“Set in the winter of late 1983, Downtown Owl stitches together small town vibes, drunken escapades, a mysterious Elvis Costello-obsessed stranger, high school politics, and sleazy coaches into an icy cacophony of darkly comedic fun.” ~Josh Batchelder, Josh at the Movies