OMAHA Review

One day you can be on the top of the world, and the next you have hit rock bottom. Omaha follows a father (John Magaro) and his two young kids on a road trip. However, we learn this is not any old road trip, but one with no end destination. Before leaving, Ella’s (Molly Belle Wright) father asks her, "If there were a fire, what would you stop to grab?" Loading the car up with what they can carry and their dog, Rex, the sheriff is there to bid them goodbye. It slowly becomes clear with an eviction notice plastered to their door, this family is not coming back home.

“Nebraska” is the answer Ella receives when she asks her father where they are going. Having to push the car to get it out of the driveway, the audience can see this family is not in a good way. The father is on edge, and throughout the film, we see his wallet become emptier, as he stops to get food or a motel for the night. The family reaches a point where they can not buy dog food and have to feed Rex human food. Ella becomes increasingly concerned as the care of Rex begins to be neglected, and her father continues to avoid her questions about what is going on. 

Ella is a prime example of an eldest daughter. Not even 10, Ella is placed in a very grown-up situation of becoming homeless. Parentified by her father, Ella is often placed with the responsibility of watching her younger brother, Charlie (Wyatt Solis), asking the cashier for their gas fill-up, and holding onto the little money they have. One time, Ella loses sight of Charlie, and once he is located, Ella receives a lecture from her father for not being responsible enough. These expectations placed on Ella are not fair to her. The audience can slowly see Ella come to terms with what is going on, but due to being so young, she can not fully comprehend what is happening to her family. 

Omaha has been criticised for being nothing more than misery porn, but I believe the film is examining the true pain many families across the United States face. Now more than ever, instability in families is rampant. I agree that Omaha is a brutal watch. I would suggest caution when giving it a watch, but I do not think you should skip this film. 

The film culminates with the family on their last dime and having to take Rex to a shelter. In a heartbreaking scene, we can feel the pain from not only the children but from the father as he knows he has failed his family. Using the last of his money, the father takes his kids to the Nebraska Zoo. There, the family makes beautiful memories, and it is as if they are a normal family. This is until they leave the Zoo, park the car and start walking towards an unknown destination. Ella is tired and confused, but trusting her father, follows him, hand in hand with Charlie. Ahead, the lights of an Emergency Room bay appear, and next thing Ella knows, her father is telling her to wait here with Charlie while he runs back to the car. A nurse (Talia Balsam) starts yelling, “You can’t leave your kids here, sir,” and Ella’s father runs away. Ella and Charlie are abandoned at the hospital. 

My question is, how did we get to this point? Unfortunately, I think it is not as easy to answer as many would hope. Ella’s father returns to the hospital a day later. Filled with regret and disdain, he wishes to see Ella and Charlie, but social services have custody of them. Slowly, we begin to unpack that the father’s wife, the kids' mother, had passed away. Many Americans have to care for sick loved ones and take on their medical debt. My take on the film is that after his wife passed away, the father could not pay off the medical debt, so their house was foreclosed on, making them homeless. This is more common than not, unfortunately. 

You do not blame the father, but feel empathy for him. Unfortunately, he is not alone in this situation. At the end of the film, we see text stating that in 2008, Nebraska created a safe haven law to decriminalise leaving unharmed infants to become wards of the state. When Nebraska initiated the safe haven, it did not specify an age. Parents from all over the United States travelled to Nebraska, leaving thirty-five children to be abandoned. None of them was an infant.

What happens to kids whose parents can not provide them a good quality of life? Do they become homeless to remain with their families, or become wards or the state? Omaha looks to ask the imperfect question. Are we left to blame the parent or the system as a whole for leading them to the dire situation?

🍿 SCORE = 89/100