In 1932 in Kingdom County, Vermont, a fire destroys much of the family's hay. They can't feed all their cattle and they can't get more hay, so they have to sell some of their cattle. Quebec Bill used to run whiskey, and that may be the only way to make money. Quebec Bill's father disappeared, according to Aunt Cordelia, as did many who ran whiskey. Quebec Bill came back to Vermont because of his father after working on ranches and as a lumberjack in Montana. Quebec Bill's brother-in-law Henry has run whiskey before, but he's reluctant to now. Wild Bill wants to go along but his mother Evangeline? has to be persuaded. Rat, who helps run the farm, also goes along but isn't sure he wants to. The group crosses the border into Canada, where whiskey is legal. Two monks see nothing wrong with helping out and they agree to store what the guys get. But the guys have no money. They have to steal from the family that sells most of the whiskey, and violence becomes necessary. Wild Bill doesn't want to kill, but he has to. He is occasionally visited by his Aunt Cordelia, who appears and disappears mysteriously. Kris Kristofferson does a great job. Quebec Bill is such a nice person, even though he is tough and willing to kill when necessary. He cares about his son. He loves nature, and there is plenty of nice scenery. And he is a man of faith. He believes Jesus approves of whatever he does.Charlie McDermott is best known as irresponsible and rebellious Axl on "The Middle", but he is a completely different character here. He isn't the brightest student, but he responsible and moral and certainly not rebellious. And yet he would like some excitement in his life.While not a comedy, this movie does provide some laughs. William Sanderson is probably best known as Larry, the brother of the two Darryls, and here he is mostly comic relief, though he takes his faith more seriously than Quebec Bill. Luis Guzman as what sounds to me like Brother Hilarious lives up to that name, though he is only in a couple of scenes. Genevieve Bujold does an excellent job as Aunt Cordelia, who is a voice of reason and provides Wild Bill plenty of guidance and real Christian morals.If you like steam trains, this movie has one, and an engineer who is quite a character.It's worth seeing if you like stories about macho men in the woods.

Set in Vermont during the Prohabition, Quebec Bill(Kris Kristofferson)is desperate for cash after a freak lightning strike burns his barn full of hay. Despite the warnings from his mystical sister, Cordelia(Genevieve Bujold), he decides to go back to his old ways and hatches a plan to steal whiskey from a Canadian whiskey pirate. Quebec Bill and his 15-year old son Wild Bill(Charlie McDermott)along with farm hand Rat(William Sanderson)and Henry Coville(Gary Farmer), the senior Bill's brother-in-law, set out on a treacherous journey across the Vermont/Canadian border to steal twenty cases of whiskey. The trip proves to be unforgettable and a bit haunting. The cinematography is beautiful and the acting is very commendable. Also in the cast: Heather Rae, Luis Guzman and Lothaire Bluteau.

I just finished watching Disappearances at AFI FEST 2006 with about 30 other people in a mostly vacant 1000 seat auditorium. The festival programmer, after seeing the lack of audience, started his opening comments with, "Well at least a few of those attending the festival have good taste in film". Well Mr. Programmer, after watching this film I must answer back "No we don't, and either do you!" This "back-woods" period piece follows young (not so) Wild Bill as he and his mystic family dangerously run illegal Canadian whiskey across the border during America's prohibition. The old-time outlaws (Kris Kristofferson and company) not only need the money to save their ramshackle Vermont farm but want to introduce little Wild Bill to the virtues of manhood.Although handsomely photographed, this adventure story lacks what makes films of this sort good, "tension" and believability. Kristofferson's lackluster performance and dry monologue reminds me of a dream I once had where Al Gore was playing the role of Willy Wonka. I just didn't care and when Wild Bills mystic grandmother appears out of thin air to give him advice it just didn't fit. Yes, I almost fell asleep more than once.Gary Farmer does do a good job as the Cameron Frye in Ferris Bueller character; brother-in-law of Big Bill while the teenage Chris McDermott does uses those piercing blue eyes to his acting benefit.But overall expect to see Jay Cravens Disappearances playing at a Block Buster $2 Bin near you.

This well-meant film falls just a bit short, and unfortunately in too many areas.The scenery is gorgeous, with vistas of north-central Vermont providing the setting for this mid-century tale. Quebec Bill endeavors to go back to his whiskey-running past in order to save his farm.Going back and forth between scenes of magical realism and straight-forward action, this film rarely hits its stride.Kris Kristofferson as Quebec Bill seems pretty stilted, or else it's his lines; or else his cross of Yankee and Quebecois accents. Anyway, he just comes off as a low-key blow-hard. His dialogs with Gary Farmer's Coville character do sparkle, though. William Sanderson's Rat Kinneson is solid. Charlie McDermott shows some real potential as young Wild Bill; but his part's not large enough to carry a scene and he never steals one. Luis Guzman shows up on Lake Memphramagog (with a fine stand-in performance by Lake Willoughby) as a monk with a boys'n'the hood accent: who knows? And then there's Bujold's Cordelia: an oracle like her namesake, she channels Yoda as she intones lines like "You will marry a Quebec woman!"?!? Just too weird and nowhere near enigmatic enough.The end gets really choppy. Again a bad mix of magical realism and the concrete. And Yoda never provides an answer we can understand.