Where the Crawdads Sing is the latest movie adaptation of a bestselling novel. Reese Witherspoon is a big supporter of Delia Owens’ book, placing it in Reese’s Book club and signing on to be an executive producer of the film. Witherspoon’s support and Taylor Swift’s original song created some decent buzz. But does Where the Crawdads Sing live up to expectations?
What’s it about?
In 1960s Barkley Cove, North Carolina, Kya Clark (Daisy Edgar-Jones) is on trial for the murder of Chase Andrews, the town’s famous high school quarterback and former boyfriend of Kya. Most of the residents of Barkley Cove shunned Kya before the murder but now truly detested her. One exception is Tom Milton (David Strathairn), a retired lawyer who volunteers to defend her in court. You learn about Kya’s life through Tom’s and Kya’s conversation in her jail cell.
Kya grew up in an abusive household with a father who would beat his wife and kids. It got so bad that each family member ran away from home, one by one, to flee the abuse. Eventually, Kya was the only one left. After Kya’s mother and siblings escaped, Kya was left alone to live with her abusive father. However, even her father abandoned Kya, leaving her to live in the marsh alone. She found a way to survive and raised herself in the marsh and gained the moniker of “the Marsh girl” from locals.
Kya’s story continues with her finding ways to support herself, avoiding child protective services, and falling in love. She first falls in love with her childhood friend Tate Walker (Taylor John Smith), and after he leaves her for college, she becomes romantically involved with Chase Andrews (Harris Dickinson). Her relationship with Chase and her status as an outcast makes her the prime suspect in the murder.
My Reaction
I am unfamiliar with the source material for the movie, as I have not read Owens’ book. With this being my first introduction to the story, I will say the premise is pretty implausible. I cannot believe that a whole town would leave a little girl, barely ten years old, alone in a dangerous marsh by herself. Sure, a few people helped her along the way. But the whole town, including the sheriff’s department, would have scoured that marsh after learning of her abandonment.
However, if you suspend disbelief and accept the premise, the movie can be somewhat enjoyable. Daisy Edgar-Jones must carry a lot of the load in the movie, and you like her acting throughout the film. Jojo Regina, who plays the child version of Kya Clark, may be more captivating than Edgar-Jones in the movie, especially with her navigating the emotional toll of child abuse and abandonment.
And yet, the story doesn’t focus nearly enough on its most compelling character. Instead, we spend a good chunk of the film watching her go through the emotional beats of falling in love and dealing with heartbreak
And yet, the story doesn’t focus nearly enough on its most compelling character. Instead, we spend a good chunk of the film watching her go through the emotional beats of falling in love and dealing with heartbreak with both Tate and Chase. This is especially laborious since the results of these relationships are so obvious. You immediately know that Tate is the one she should end up with and that Chase is a manipulative loser. The imbalance with these shallow characters partnering with Kya, who is so layered, felt out of place. And yet, this is half of the movie.
I wish we had more of Kya learning to live in the Marsh and navigating problems that arise when you live alone in the marsh for a decade. The movie’s set pieces and cinematography are beautiful, and the marsh is central to Kya’s development. So, strangely, the movie didn’t lean into that more a-la Castaway. Because the relationship aspects were so prominent and somewhat dull, the film feels long. Some unique decisions that maybe departed a bit more from the book would have served this movie well.
Overall Rating
Where the Crawdads Sing has good bones to it and could have made for a more captivating story. However, it leans way too much into the romantic melodrama, which takes away some of the agency of what should have been a strong, independent main character. Yet there is enough here to enjoy. You do root for Daisy Edgar-Jones’ Kya to succeed, and David Strathairn’s performance as the lawyer is great. If you are a fan of the book or crave melodramatic stories and can forgive an outlandish premise, then Where the Crawdads Sing on a Saturday morning wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world.
