Mighty Movie Podcast: Robert Persons on <i>General Orders No. 9</i>

I tend to lose patience with people who go the "words cannot describe..." route when they're talking about something. There are always words, if you know how to use them. I gotta admit, though, General Orders No. 9, the enigmatic debut work of filmmaker Robert Persons (no relation), is something of a challenge. A meditation on small-town South -- Georgia in specific -- its connection to the natural world and its death at the hands of growing populations and commercial interests, the film is quiet, beautiful, and strangely moving. It's also the kind of thing you have to sit down and experience for yourself, ideally when (like a certain film journalist who has maybe overindulged on CG-gorged, three-explosions-per-minute summer fare) you're ready for something that repays your rapt attention with still, thoughtful grace.

Click on the player to hear my interview with Robert Persons.

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