Some big films leave one dissatisfied and some little films leave one feeling very satisfied. 'Off the Map,' while living up to its title by easing onto DVD with no fanfare at all (Was it ever in mainstream theaters?), is certainly one of the latter.I doubt that it will connect with many 16-25-year-old males … at least not the ones who need sex, several explosions and characters morphing into super humans to be entertained. It is one of those quiet films where very little actually 'happens.' Of course, many of the better films in history, from Carl Theodor Dreyer's awesome Le Passion de Jeanne d'Arc to All About Eve and 12 Angry Men to The Big Chill and the Royal Tenenbaums, are essentially about people sitting around, talking, when one gets right down to it. Each tells a significant tale and tells it extraordinarily well. So does this little gem.Any film with Sam Elliott in it has a certain element of class. (He even lent a smidge of dignity to Ghost Rider.) He is magnificent here as the depressed Charley Braden. He is a man who has built his life and family on a survivalist creed that a man wastes time working for an employer. Instead, he should be learning skills he can put to use. He can fix anything, his family brags, and presumably this skill is bartered, along with firewood, plant care and other services. The family survives on virtually no money and home schools the narrator daughter, 11 or 12-year old Bo (Valentina de Angelis).The film depicts a summer (apparently during the 1970s or 1980s) when Charley somehow plummets into depression. His lovely and sturdy wife Arlene (Joan Allen) is pushed almost to the breaking point dealing with his condition. Meanwhile, Bo dreams of a "normal" life with all the trappings of the adult commercial world, briefcases, appointment books and credit cards, not to mention public school.Their world is transformed that summer when depressed IRS man William Gibbs (Jim True-Frost) shows up for an audit. He winds up staying almost indefinitely, taken in by the awe inspiring landscape and by the simple family – especially Arlene.The cast is outstanding. Elliott and Allen are perfect as the minimalist couple, who apparently have been happy and productive for years in their chosen lifestyle. As others have said, Allen's solid foundation holds the film together, just as her character does the fictional family. True-Frost does marvelous work as the displaced agent, who finds himself as a painter and becomes a family member. DeAngelis is perky and enjoyable as the precocious Bo. I can certainly see such a bright young kid who lacks some of the social graces of regular social intercourse with others saying and doing the slightly bizarre things that Bo comes up with. J.K. Simmons is also very good as Charley's loyal buddy, George.For a "talking" film to work it takes good cinematography and believable characters one cares about. This film has these in spades. The landscape shots are spectacular. (It's too bad almost nobody got to see it on the big screen.) The characters, meanwhile, are quirky and likable, and the acting is first-rate. Director Scott Campbell succeeds in telling a rewarding story of love, individuality and determination.I came away with a very satisfied feeling after watching Off the Map. It's certainly the best new film I've seen in 2009. For anyone who can appreciate a skillful and deep, yet simple film, this is a real winner.

I really enjoyed the relaxed nature of this film. Moving back from the edge of my seat for a change, I found I was able to simply observe a lovely story. In some ways it resembles "An Unfinished Life" - same kind of locale in the U.S. SW outback and a family-life storyline - however I enjoyed this one much more and thought AFL resembled more a movie-of-the-week. I think young Bo's character (only child 12 yr old growing up in the middle of nowhere) is the central piece here and in that regard her character development, particularly in the second half, looked like it really wanted to go somewhere (e.g. coyote) but it never fully made the trip. I wonder what the play script did at that point in the story.High marks for feel goodness without being sappy, lovely cinematography, very good acting and direction for the most part.

I predict great things for the career of Valentina de Angelis. Judging by her IMDb listing, she's turning into a real beauty, and judging by her performance as young Bo in "Off the Map," in which she shines like I haven't seen a young actress do since Reese Witherspoon's debut in "Man in the Moon," or perhaps Natalie Portman in "Léon" aka "The Professional," Ms. de Angelis has a bright future ahead of her, whether she chooses to pursue acting, modeling, or anything else. I'm getting the idea she's put schoolwork first, which I applaud, but I sure hope she returns to acting when she's ready. She's a keeper.None of which is meant to overlook the superb performances of the rest of the cast in this Joan Ackerman screen adaptation of her own play, which is equally superbly directed by Cameron Scott, George C.'s actor son. I can't recall a single false note in the entire production. Joan Allen demonstrates her tremendous versatility as the back-to-nature earthmother who, along with depressed husband, Charley (Sam Elliott), sparks and nurtures the artistic rebirth of a neophyte IRS agent (Jim True-Frost, a Steppenwolf Theatre alum, along with Ms. Allen) who has come to their New Mexico farm to investigate unfiled tax returns. The resultant transformations of love and loss make for a beautifully conceived and executed film. Everything from Juan Ruiz Anchia's careful cinematography to Gary DeMichele's evocative score to all the rest of the many hands that helped craft this overlooked cinematic jewel rings true. This is pure and honest storytelling at its best.Barely scratching out a box office of a mil, "Off the Map" seems so far to have found only an older audience more interested in films that explore the human heart. Sadly, it hasn't dented the under-18 set, at least not on the IMDb, and likely never will, not being an action or SFX popcorn-muncher. More is the loss for them.I won't say much more. Other commentators have amply described the intricacies of the story. I'll note that J.K. Simmons' chameleon performance as George is remarkable, a polar opposite from his apoplectic J.J. Jameson in the "Spiderman" series. I'll also note that the few pervs drawn to the film because they heard Joan Allen gets naked will be disappointed in the lack of sexuality in the scene (that's not what it's about), but will still be pleased by what they get to see; the lady is firm proof that fifty can be nifty.

'Off the Map' passed the time, it was pleasant, it was sweet, certainly a little different to everything else out there, but by no means did I 'enjoy' it.Reading all the treacly positive comments here on IMDb, and looking at the IMDb ratings categorized by age & sex, it appears that this 'is a film for everyone' (though females in all age groups will like it slightly better than men of similar age). Yet I watched 'Off the Map' this weekend on DVD with 3 other people (so we were 2 males, 2 females), and who's ages spanned 3 IMDb age-groups, and we all came away from it feeling not only a sigh of relief that the film was finally over, but disappointed that 'that' was it.The film itself is decent: gorgeous scenery, pretty good acting, straightforward story, etc, etc. But the film plodded along so slowly that we all found ourselves looking at the clock to see how much longer before it was due to be over. And by the time it was about to finish, I couldn't even remember how we found ourselves in the flashback-that-is-the-movie to begin with!Not all that much happens in the film, and I'm OK with that. But what could have been done better perhaps would have been to show us a glimpse of life *before* the father's depression, a glimpse at the happy, active and loving family they we are told they once were. This would have contrasted well with the family that we found ourselves watching, and perhaps made us more sympathetic towards them. Bo, of course, has memories of the better days, which is why her recollection of the time in her life that we are privy to is so much more poignant. We could have benefited from the same.I had to laugh at the 'sexual content' advisory on the box (and the fact that someone commenting on the film here on IMDb bumped their rating up by 2-stars 'because of the nudity': there is 1 scene in which a 'live' breast is visible, and maybe 2 instances where we quickly see some nude sketches of the same person - none of which are sexual in context. And correct me if I'm wrong, but in all cases Bo, the young girl, is present (fully clothed at all times!).I wouldn't have mentioned it - except that it shows that people have a tendency these days to over-dramatize things. Including 'how good' this film was.On the bright side, I can say that I am thankful that Amy Brenneman's screen time was kept to under 3 minutes!This film would have been a good 'made for TV' movie. Regardless, if you haven't yet seen 'Off the Map' and are wondering if you should rent it, ask yourself first if you'd enjoy a nice relaxing evening watching a film on The Women's Network. 'Cos this film suits it perfectly.