‘The Salt Path’ – Review
Some films entertain, others inspire, and then there are narrative journeys like The Salt Path that reach into your being and grab your heart with both hands, and leave it shaken with raw emotion and unfiltered truth. This is a powerful, yet quiet drama that pulls you into the lives of two people stripped of everything, yet who discover what truly matters along the windswept coast of England. And it is an experience that will leave you deeply moved.
Married couple Raynor and Moth Winn (Gillian Anderson, Jason Isaacs) receive a bad health diagnosis and are left homeless after legal trouble, so they embark on the 630-mile (1,010 km) South West Coast Path, the longest uninterrupted path in England, from Minehead to Poole around the coast of Somerset, Devon, Cornwall, and Dorset.
Based on the best-selling memoir by Raynor Winn, The Salt Path follows Raynor (Gillian Anderson) and her husband Moth (Jason Isaacs), a middle-aged couple who lose their home, their livelihood, and are dealt a devastating terminal diagnosis—all within the span of days. With nowhere to turn and nothing left to lose, they set out on a spontaneous, seemingly impossible journey: to walk the 630-mile South West Coast Path, from Somerset to Dorset, with only a tent, a pair of backpacks, and each other.
The concept might sound simple, even quaint, but this is no easy trek. The path is wild, the weather unforgiving, and their bodies ill-prepared for the physical demands of long-distance hiking. And yet, with each step, what begins as an act of desperation evolves into something deeper: a spiritual reckoning, a return to self, and a reclamation of dignity.
Director Marianne Elliott, making her feature debut after a celebrated theatre career, crafts the film with elegance and restraint. She lets the emotion breathe, never forcing sentimentality, and instead allowing the natural rhythms of life and love to speak for themselves. She delivers an experience for audiences that is unrushed, and instead contemplative and reflective of the couple’s walk and rekindling of their self and spirit. Her work digs deep into the meditative flow of the narrative, and she shields no part of the Winn’s story from the audience. The good, the bad, the trying, the desperate, the love and the rejuvenation of their grand journey is all present in this sublime cinema experience, and Elliott announces herself as a cinematic storyteller with a grand touch who can reach the human soul.
Award-winning actress Gillian Anderson cements her position as a thespian of immense power with a performance of staggering emotional depth and a deep heart as she embodies the figure of Raynor Winn. Fierce and fragile in equal measure, Anderson’s portrayal of Raynor is of a woman trying to stay strong in the face of unimaginable loss, who finds solace and strength in the rhythm of the trail she walks. Her performance is driven by expression, with her eyes speaking more than words, as they communicate all manner of emotion and feeling from grief to pain, resolve and triumph, which ultimately leads her to a sense of heartfelt peace.
English thespian Jason Isaacs, who has built a career for himself with his expression of dark, edgy and complicated characters, is an utter revelation as Raynor’s husband Moth. There is a quiet grace to his portrayal — a gentle, everyman quality that speaks volumes to his spirit and character, especially in the trials and tribulations he has to undergo across the course of the story. He brings a layered, calm presence and warmth, even as he suffers through the film’s first act, but who, through the path he walks, and his wife’s enduring love, overcomes the unthinkable. Together, Anderson and Isaacs have a chemistry that’s tender, lived-in, and heartbreakingly real. You believe every moment of their journey together, and they both truly honour the spirit, the relationship, and love of Raynor and Moth Winn.
The Salt Path is a meditative poem on the path to acceptance of oneself and of the healing power that nature provides, and though unspoken, a compelling sense of spirit and faith exists within this tranquil watch. It is a story of action, and quite words, and where the little things in life are treasured along such an open and free, yetm rough and sometimes raw road – a warm meal after a hard day, the heat of a raging fire, the tranquil peace of a clifftop overlooking the ocean or the joy of rediscovering one’s worth outside of a broken system. It’s about the way nature strips you bare, and then, piece by piece, puts you back together, stronger, more aligned to the path of nature, completely adaptable.
At the centre of the grand journey of Raynor and Moth Winn is a simple, yet beautiful tale of resilience and hope in the utter worst of times. This story shows how one can overcome the most strenuous of odds, with the person they love beside them, and in the process become stronger through the shared journey together. This narrative is one of healing and the calling for self-love, and watching it will leave your heart fluttering with joy.
Simply put, The Salt Path is an utter gem of cinema. To experience it is to be washed over by emotion, and an utterly incredible true story, and it leaves a lasting impact. This film doesn’t just invite you to watch this story, but it asks you to give your emotions to it, and to accept its message of healing and rejuvenation into your soul. The Salt Path is a story for anyone who’s ever felt lost, broken, or uncertain but continued to walk anyway. It is a stirring ode to the power of resilience, love, and the wild beauty of second chances.
Image: Transmission Films
