Emelie Mahdavian’s sweeping documentary Bitterbrush masterfully revisits the genre of the western through the perspective of Hollyn Patterson and Colie Moline, two experienced range riders who are spending their last summer herding cattle in the remote and rugged mountains of Idaho. Totally off the grid with only their dogs as companions, Hollyn and Colie brave inclement weather and perilous work conditions while questioning their purposes and contemplating their futures. A quiet-but-powerful portrait of friendship, life transitions, and the work of two exceptionally skilled and resourceful young women against the isolated and beautiful landscape of the American West, Bitterbrush is an intimate and attentive portrayal of a nomadic way of life rarely seen on film.
