Nomadland

There are four takeaways that I would like to share after viewing Nomadland:

1.  I have seen YouTube videos by people describing the techniques for van camping, which is the practice of living out of a van, car, or RV without paying a camping fee.  The videos I've watched primarily give advice on where to park overnight, how to avoid drawing unwanted attention, and how to make the inside of the van as comfortable as possible.  One specific video I watched explained the importance of ventilation when heating the van overnight, to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.  Watching those YouTube videos was a good prologue for Nomadland, which is basically a mocumentary about van camping.

2.  I've now seen Frances McDormand relieving herself twice, which is precisely two more times than I had hoped.

3.  Frances McDormand reciting a sonnet by Shakespeare on a beautiful night in the desert almost makes up for Takeaway No. 2, but not quite.

4.  I have many complaints about Nomadland, first and foremost being that it was shot unnecessarily in a documentary style.  That being said, I found McDormand's performance to be compelling, and I respect that the director, Chloé Zhao allowed the performance to stand on its own, and didn't depend on exposition to explain the character's motivations.