Arid Cut

Sandy, the ever helpful Mother Teresa of 2nd St., suffers from seizures and lives in her car with her nephew, Rail, who came up on a motorcycle from home turf in San Diego, looking for his father in a place called Arid Cut. But nobody knows where it is. His girlfriend, Mitra, is on his trail, determined to help him see what they have together, and convinced he needs her on his mission. Lucille is the Charon of this River Styx. She drives Uber and lives with her mother in a van. Kali, a working girl, is stationed on the tracks with her ineffectual pimp, Oscar. Herbie, who looks like a USC Freshman, sells meth out of Pinto’s RV in order to keep his homeless brother in school. Ziggy, Travis, and Taylor remodel homes which are suddenly being razed under Eminent Domain. The race track is being torn down and a cordon sanitaire of condos going up around the neighborhood. There’s no more West to escape to. (Mill Valley Film Festival)