There have been numerous films that center on addiction. Normally, they focus on salacious storylines that show all the gritty moments of drug use and the things people are willing to do for their next fix. They focus on the drama of a drug-filled lifestyle and rush past recovery to reveal a sober character at the end. Union County focuses on that often skipped transition. It’s a film that highlights recovery and the community that stands strong to uphold and support those individuals striving to get out from under the thumb of addiction.
Cody Parsons (Will Poulter; Death of a Unicorn) is fresh out of prison and, as part of his release, enters a court-mandated drug rehabilitation program. While there, he reconnects with his brother Jack (Noah Centineo; Warfare), who is also in recovery. The two of them, on this journey together, battle internal struggles as they try to get their lives back on track with the help of their community and the support of their counselor, Annette Deao.
Written and directed by Adam Meeks, Union County is a hybrid film that fuses fiction and documentary together. Poulter and Centineo are embedded in this community as two of only a few actors among the entire cast. Similar to Sing Sing, scenes that include other people in recovery are played by actual members of the drug rehab program. Those scenes give the film its pulse as we listen to their real-life updates and celebrate their wins along their journeys to reclaim their lives.
Meeks stretched his short film of the same name into this feature-length film, and at times, you can feel the weight of the runtime. In the midst of laugh-out-loud comedies within the Sundance lineup, this film felt like it stepped on the brakes. It’s a meditative film that can feel a bit tedious because there aren’t many moments of intense drama or thrilling drug deals gone awry, as you might see in other stereotypical drug abuse dramas. At first, I found the pacing frustrating as it felt very drawn out and slow. Then I realized this is clearly by design, and for the most part, it works. It mirrors the reality of recovery. They tell you to take it one day at a time, but no one imagines how long those days feel when time used to fly by under the influence. Now sober, it feels like the minutes crawl by, and there’s so much of the day left. It’s a struggle to find ways to fill it when you’re not used to having to experience life in that way. And when the relationships you used to have are fractured, mending them doesn’t happen overnight.
Poulter and Centineo deliver powerfully layered performances, with Centineo arguably at his best. They’re compelling as brothers whose bond is both supportive and harmful to each other. At any point, being together could be the best or worst thing for their sobriety. Jack (Centineo) helps Cody (Poulter) get a job. But in the next scene, with free time on their hands, they’re making the decision to visit one of their old dealers.
Yet, the true standout of this film is Annette Deao, who plays the counselor both in the film and in real life. Deao has been a counselor with the drug rehab court for 22 years, and that passion for helping her community and the genuine love she has for these people radiate off the screen. It adds a layer of authentic heart to the film that not only highlights the crucial work being done in Ohio but also invites the audience to get involved in their own communities.
What Meeks does in Union County is quite spectacular. The Ohio native builds this entire story around these real people and real struggles that plague not just his hometown, but all of America. It not only gives voice to an aspect of addiction that’s often ignored, but also celebrates the people on the front lines doing the work to help restore the individuals and the community. It’s not a story about the fall, but the fragile and hard-fought climb back up.
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