Union County

Those going through rehab to bounce back from the struggles involved in drug addiction will tell you about the tremendous significance of each and every personal victory – no matter how small or seemingly trivial – that they experience as they move through the process. For those who have successfully managed to get their lives back on track, they can’t begin to fully express the gratitude they feel for the love and support that they receive from the caregivers and advocates with whom they partner, especially since the temptation to backslide is ever-present. And witnessing what such individuals go through in these circumstances provides the basis for this debut feature from writer-director Adam Meeks. The film follows the ups and downs of Cody Parsons (Will Poulter), a former inmate who has been addicted to opiates since he was 17 but has recently been released to participate in the Adult Recovery Court program in rural Union County, Ohio. This multi-pronged treatment protocol is aimed at helping substance abusers transition back into everyday life with the assistance of specialized counselors, police officials, medical practitioners and a compassionate but strict judge (Kevin P. Braig) providing comprehensive oversight. Cody’s experience is somewhat unusual in that he’s going through the program at the same time as his foster brother Jack (Noah Centineo), who’s more genial, open, animated yet vulnerable than his more reserved sibling and who has had more than his share of missteps along the way. Cody also has several uncomfortable encounters with his sister, Katrina (Emily Meade), who’s not particularly forgiving, making Cody’s recovery that much more difficult. In telling this story, the filmmaker provides an up-close look at what individuals living with these challenges go through on a daily basis, including glimpses into the lives of real-life program participants, an approach that’s eye-opening in an almost documentary way. And this material is enhanced by the stellar, emotive performances of Poulter, Centineo and Meade. However, despite the contributions of these fictional characters, their back stories feel somewhat underdeveloped, amounting to a significant missing piece of the picture’s narrative puzzle. While this release frequently makes high-minded references to the characters needing to put their past behind them and reminding them that there’s really no one to blame for falling prey to addiction, this gap in the story is nevertheless difficult to ignore. In fact, as Katrina earnestly confesses in one scene with Cody, she recognizes that there’s a lot she’d like to be able to forgive him for but that she doesn’t know how to do so, an ironic observation to which viewers can probably relate because they’re just as out of the loop as she is, albeit for a different reason – a lack of understanding about a back story of which she seems to be painfully aware but that audience members have been left in the dark. This lack of clarification tends to make Cody’s odyssey somewhat incomplete and vague, a serious shortcoming to an otherwise-engaging production. It almost feels as though the filmmaker lacked faith in his audience to be able to process the truth, whatever it might be, and instead chose to leave it up to viewers to fill in the blanks, perhaps even nudging them to rely on the foregoing noble sentiments as the justification for taking this approach. Maybe I’m out on a limb in this regard, but I truly believe I would have gotten more out of “Union County” if it hadn’t employed such a timid, kid gloves tactic, making it possible for me to more fully join in the joyousness of those victory celebrations that take place along the road to recovery.