If there’s one nation that peeves US actors it’s the UK; this is due to so much British talent stealing juicy parts in that part of the world, showing them up no end.

Quietly doing the same are actors from Australia, with the likes of Hugh Jackman and Margot Robbie.

But there are some actors who can slip under the radar, with Americans believing they share the same nationality, like English actor Damson Idris in the US show Snowfall.

An Australian equivalent could be Joel Edgerton, with the majority of his roles playing American.

This continues with his latest role, playing a man in the early 1900’s of the old US of A.

Since the age of six, Robert (Edgerton) has spent much of his life on his own, with his career as a logger contributing to it.

But a chance meeting with a young woman, Gladys (Felicity Jones) at church, sees that love changes his life.

He is content, although he does have to spend time away for seasons with work, but at least he has something – some one – to go back to.

But it turns out his life has more surprises, of an unpleasant variety, that hang heavy around his neck for the rest of his days.

Director Clint Bentley’s film – only his second – is an astonishing piece of cinema.

It’s based on Denis Johnson’s 2011 novella of the same name, with Bentley doing those prose justice with his visual lexicon.

Edgerton’s character has depth, despite the fact he doesn’t have much dialogue. This only goes to reinforce his isolation – as does his rural locales. He is aided by a narrator, supplied by Will Patton, who helps fill in the picture.

Not that he needs to as Bentley creates a beguiling magic with his vision. This is supported throughout by the square, 3:2 screen ratio, which is reminiscent of photographs, as the film is a personal album of sorts for its protagonist, which audiences are privy too, flicking through the pages as we do. The stillness of the camera much of the time contributes to this as well.

There’s a heartbreaking beauty to the way the story is told; the cinematography has poetry to it, as we are immersed into the personal world of Robert, as we confront his demons with him: his loneliness, his grief, feeling lost in a world mostly of his own making.

It would be easy to believe that Edgerton was American if you didn’t know any better. The same could be said for his co-star, English Felicity Jones, with them making a very believable American couple.

It’s touching, moving, and packs a mighty emotional punch with very few words, leaving its photographic imagery to tell the story, which it does with a sublime elegance.

Train Dreams is the perfect example of a feature being more than just that, created with a striking use of the medium with astonishing craft, making it transcend being just a film, more of an experience – an unforgettable one at that.