Heartland International Film Festival Review: ‘Sheepdog’

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Review by James Lindorf

For the second year in a row, MovieMaker Magazine has named the Heartland International Film Festival one of “The 25 Coolest Film Festivals in the World” and one of “50 Film Festivals Worth the Entry Fee.” The festival may be over, but you can see what made the event so cool by searching for #HIFF33 on social media. Over 11 days, organizers hosted 200 filmmakers, 298 screenings, 27 U.S. & World Premieres, 15 special events, and 7500+ virtual streams. The next film in my festival recap is Steven Grayhm’s independent feature “Sheepdog,” which made its Midwest Premiere at Heartland. Check the website SheepdogTheMovie for their upcoming festival schedule and get updates on its wider release.

Calvin Cole (Steven Grayhm) returned from his time in the military with plenty of medals, almost as many traumatic brain injuries, and a severe case of PTSD. He spends his days working at a papermill, hanging out with his best friend Darryl (Matt Dallas), and numbing his pain with alcohol and prescription drugs. While refusing help from the local V.A. Hospital, Cole tried his best to reintegrate back into his life, but his impaired judgment led to a separation between Cole and his wife Alice (Lilli Cooper), who took their two kids with her when she left.

Much like Scrooge, it will take the introduction of three characters to have the hope of turning Cole’s life around. The first is an innocent man who Cole viciously attacked after an unknown trigger resulted in a PTSD event. The second is Alice’s father, Whitney (Vondie Curtis-Hall), another veteran who shows up at Cole’s home looking for Alice after serving a 30-year sentence in Leavenworth. The final person is Dr. Elecia Knox (Virginia Madsen), Cole’s court-appointed therapist, who is as new to the process as Cole.

“Sheepdog” is a film that is the result of 13 years of commitment. During a Q&A session after the screening, Grayhm discussed his time spent researching and developing the screenplay, traveling the US, Canada, and the U.K., and interviewing hundreds of military veterans of all generations and conflicts. One of those interviewees, Retired Army Veteran George Rice, gave Grayhm a memorial band with the names of three fallen soldiers engraved in it. “He held this out to me and said, ‘don’t let me down.’ I’ve worn it every day since then,” Graham said to the sold-out crowd. You can see the love and care in every frame of the film and hear it in each word from Grayhm.

While expertly exploring the physical and psychological repercussions of trauma from war, “Sheepdog” is also the quintessential actor’s film. Each main character gets a moment to shine with an impressive performance and dialogue. Unfortunately not all of them feel as well integrated into the story as others. In fact, Grayhm’s emotional moments are the only ones that feel natural because he is the connecting character. Everyone else feels a bit like a to-do list, and Grayhm fits them in the best he could at his level of experience at that time. “Sheepdog” is his second feature film as a writer and director, but he started working on it long before 2021’s “The Secret of Sinchanee.”

“Sheepdog” is an incredibly powerful film that does most things well. Its depiction of life in a dying small American town, the way it handles depression and trauma, and its powerful message of hope for recovery for all veterans are all beautifully handled. “Sheepdog” has two flaws; the first is the previously mentioned integration of the various monologues. The second issue is one born out of love and respect for its subjects. Grayhm seemed determined not to make Cole not come across as a bad guy. Because of that choice, many reactions to his behavior seem disproportionate. When he genuinely screws up, people are overly nice, but they explode when his impulse control leads to an accident that could have happened at any time because he was tangentially responsible. Those flaws pale in comparison to the good notes, particularly the strength of the performances, and that earns “Sheepdog” a solid 4 out of 5.