Manhattan, Kansas

“This is my movie. She is my subject,” filmmaker Tara Wray reassures herself as she heads to reconnect with her mother. She prepares herself to concurrently distance herself and pull herself deeper into the difficult, gripping character that is her mom Evie. In the beautiful documentary Manhattan, Kansas, 25-year-old Wray wrestles with family, absolution, and herself in unprotected, helpless fashion.

Evie suffered a psychotic breakdown and lives under the weight of an untold, unknown mental illness. Tara distanced herself from her mother, heading to New York City and starting a life of her own while trying to place her mother and the abuses of her past life in the rear-view mirror. With instances of resentment and horror coating the lining of Tara’s upbringing, one can hardly blame her for fleeing her demons.

With her documentary piece, Wray confronts her demons and makes an effort to help her mother face her own. But the path is far from straight and the road is far from painless. Both mother and daughter struggle under the burden of their lives and regrets, yet both mirror the same vigour and tenacity. Evie rambles and struggles to determine a purpose for her daughter’s documentary, while Wray struggles to keep the camera on and keep her emotional space. In many ways, we are witnessing a tug-of-war.

Tara frequently battles her own sense of good will and concern. She is trying not to get hurt again by her mother but also strives to understand her, wishing for calm and a better life for the homeless, meandering Evie. Tara’s mother is attempting to make a career for herself as an abstract artist, selling “$25,000 art for 30 cents.” She is also the recipient of various “assignments,” which appear to come into her head at ostensibly haphazard intervals. When Tara arrives back in her mother’s life, Evie is working on finding the Geodetic Center of the United States.

Tara elects to help her mother find the Geodetic Center, which is located in Lebanon, Kansas. Upon taking her mother there to realize her mission, Tara learns that Evie believes that world peace and prosperity will come as the consequence of her finding the spot. Evie is overwhelmed for the moment, but quickly moves on to preparing for the next “assignment.” World peace doesn’t occur, but a chain of events is set in motion in Evie’s life that eventually does bring some resemblance of harmony.

Manhattan, Kansas is a tough film to watch. At once voyeuristic and adoring, we are often left with the feeling that we shouldn’t be seeing this. We shouldn’t be seeing Tara cursing at her mother from afar and tearing at the grass in a field. We shouldn’t be seeing the private conversations of this family. And we shouldn’t be seeing Evie in the shape she’s in. Is it exploitative? I’m not so sure. In many ways, Wray’s documentary is a form of healing and in many other ways it is a film of investigation. I’m reminded of a lyric from a Stereophonics song: “You gotta go there to come back.”

And Tara Wray does indeed go there to come back. Reading the liner notes of the DVD, which functions as a sort of post-film diary or stream of consciousness from Tara, it is revealed that the filmmaker struggled with alcohol during the making of Manhattan, Kansas. It is a compelling aspect to note, as Tara’s struggles with her mother are augmented by the evident struggles she has inside.

Manhattan, Kansas is a complicated piece. It is affectionate and angry, heart-rending and raw, delicate and distanced. Tara Wray’s documentary is a movingly special piece of filmmaking and it deserves to be seen. It is potent in ways that only the most reflective personal stories can be. For all of her flaws and all of her own shortcomings, I have nothing but the ultimate respect for this young filmmaker and her determined, boundlessly genuine project.

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