The Overnighters

It develops into a study of obsession, hypocrisy, righteousness and self-doubt, questioning motive and then gob-smacking the audience with the wholly unexpected.

While initially a gentle interrogation of Christian dogma, The Overnighters expands to a larger investigation of altruism and its roots in private psychologies.

Moss uses images of drill towers or blistering flame as visual metaphors for other things transpiring on screen: the fracturing of a family, the heated fury that comes with a sense of betrayal.

"The Overnighters" is commendable for many reasons, not the least of which is the way it allows complex issues to remain complex. There is a clear conflict between the pastor and the town, but there's no good vs. evil.

So much of "The Overnighters" tells all sorts of truths, and Moss earned the trust of his subjects, whatever they might think of the result.

The movie might seem like just another liberal do-gooder profile, yet a shocker ending throws new and disturbing light on the situation, amplifying the Christian themes at the heart of the story.

It's about humanity: our paranoia, fear, and stubbornness to evolve into a species where peace could ever be a viable reality.

One of the most potent examples of cinéma vérité to arrive in recent years, Jesse Moss's "The Overnighters" transcends the genre with a multifaceted examination of complex social issues facing the town of Williston, North Dakota.

An existentially probing documentary with more layers than a twisty Hollywood thriller, at turns inspiring, challenging, sobering and finally devastating.

Has been described as a 21st-century 'The Grapes of Wrath,' but its plot twists are of the type that might have caused Tom Joad to hightail it back to Oklahoma.

This story, touching many social issues, is told on a very personal level. There is an extraordinary revelation near the end of the film. It is as if it was written by a great screenwriter, but instead, it is real life. Amazing.

In The Overnighters documentarist Jesse Moss found his story and pursued it with remarkable empathy, all in the best traditions of the genre.