Hillbilly Elegy is an upcoming American drama film based on a memoir of the same name by author and venture capitalist J. D. Vance. Ron Howard is directing the movie while Vanessa Taylor wrote the screenplay. The movie questions what really is the American Dream and what it means to live one and get towards it. This is done by looking at three generations of a family that lives in the Appalachians. What is the movie all about? Is it worth watching? When does it come out? Well, keep on reading to find out!
Hillbilly Elegy: Plot and Cast
The movie is based on the memoir titled Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis. The author J. D. Vance writes about growing up in Middletown, Ohio while being raised in a family from Kentucky with Appalachian values. These values mostly consist of love for the country and loyalty to each other, in spite of abuse and violence.
He talks about his grandfather and his mother’s history of drug abuse, as well as the latter’s failed relationships. Even though his family history is so convoluted, his ‘tough-loving’ grandmother pushed him to attend college in Ohio, and eventually Yale Law School. Prior to that, his family all lived in near poverty, with low paying and physical jobs.
Vance questions the reasons for this misfortunes, and whether the people themselves are responsible for their poverty. He questions whether the hillbilly culture is the reason for the social stagnation faced by his culture. These questions also highlight reasons for why the Appalachians have been shifting from a Democratic to a Republican majority.
The cast includes Glenn Close, Amy Adams, Gabriel Basso, Haley Bennett, Freida Pinto, Bo Hopkins, and Owen Asztalos.
Hillbilly Elegy: Release Date and Trailer
The film is scheduled to be released sometime in November 2020 on Netflix. Watch Ron Howard speak about the movie below: