The Train Dreams Wars Are Here. Wait, What?

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Clint Bentley’s quiet and touching film, Train Dreams, recently appeared on Netflix and quickly sparked a lot of passionate discussion online – and I was right there with everyone else. The debates covered all sorts of things: the voice-over narration (was there too much, or not enough?), the meaning of the title, how closely the film followed the book, and even the Nick Cave song that played at the end. Some people even argued about the fact that everyone was arguing! I’m not sharing any of those online arguments because everyone’s had enough, and I think a few people have blocked me anyway.

Honestly, it’s just delightful to be having this conversation about such a small, intimate film. Train Dreams wasn’t a Netflix production, they acquired it after its Sundance debut, and I’ll admit, many of us feared it would get swallowed up by their endless stream of content. I truly believe this is a movie best seen on the big screen – I was lucky enough to catch it twice that way. Netflix did give it a limited theatrical release, which is more than some of their other, even good, films get. It’s still playing in a few cities like New York and Los Angeles through Thanksgiving. But what Netflix does exceptionally well is get a film in front of a massive audience, and, as we’re seeing now, even spark a genuine buzz around it – even if that buzz is fleeting, lasting just a week or two.

We’ve seen this pattern with other Netflix releases before. For example, A House of Dynamite briefly sparked debate recently, and Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein has led to ongoing discussions about its adaptation, pacing, and Jacob Elordi’s performance. It will be interesting to see if Rian Johnson’s Wake Up Dead Man, which is now in theaters, generates similar buzz. A particularly memorable case was in 2019, when The Irishman and Marriage Story received polite reactions in cinemas, but then became huge online topics—filled with memes and strong opinions—once they were available on Netflix. Sometimes, Netflix encourages these conversations through its own social media, but what’s different with the debate around Train Dreams is that it seems to be happening naturally, without the company actively pushing it.

Ideally, films would consistently find audiences through movie theaters – starting with limited releases and then expanding, or with well-planned wide releases. Unfortunately, that’s rarely the case now. Very few films have achieved that kind of success this year. One Battle After Another sparked a lot of conversation and continues to be debated, and I’m hoping Chloé Zhao’s Hamnet does the same in the coming weeks and months. Both that film and Train Dreams are expected to be contenders for major awards, which will definitely keep them in the spotlight. However, even though I adore Train Dreams, I doubt it could generate that level of discussion through a theatrical release, no matter how well-funded or successful it might be.

Doesn’t the value of a conversation matter, though? Those who truly appreciate a film like Train Dreams (and many people do) might find it frustrating when discussions are filled with frivolous jokes. Of course, not all conversations are the same. But when a movie sparks widespread discussion – from all sorts of people, everywhere – it’s bound to feel superficial or pointless to some. That’s just the nature of popular art. The fact that movies remain popular means people will be watching and debating them in many different ways.

Netflix is great at sparking conversations, but those conversations don’t usually stick around for long. Just like its shows, the buzz quickly fades after a week or two as everyone moves on to the next popular thing. That’s just how things are today, and it’s hard to change. We might argue about things like the debates surrounding Train Dreams, but we’ll likely look back on these discussions fondly once they’re over.

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2025-11-25 23:54