Jennifer Lawrence had ascended to fame at such a quick pace that attempting to take a more somber, grounded role in a smaller project was not an easy task. Causeway was a film that Lawrence helped to put into existence, as she both lent her star power to a first-time feature director in Lila Neugebauer and joined the project as a producer. While Lawrence has done a great job throughout her career at playing complex, alienated women who struggle to overcome social pressures, Causeway dealt with some of the most grave subject material of her career in dealing with the post-traumatic stress disorder that many veterans face when returning from international tours. Lawrence is phenomenal in what is easily one of her greatest performances, but she’s outmatched by her co-star, Brian Tyree Henry, whose work earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.

Causeway stars Lawrence as Lynsey, a soldier returning to her hometown of New Orleans after suffering a traumatic brain injury that forced her to attend physical therapy. Although Lynsey’s body is on the mend, she has not entirely adjusted mentally to the pressures of being in the place that brought so many memories, both good and bad. Henry plays James, an auto mechanic who lost his leg in a car accident and has been dealing with a tragedy within his own life. Causeway is a film about healing and recovery, as it deals with two characters who find that their physical suffering is much easier to deal with than the dark thoughts that enter their minds. While it does not suggest that moving forward from trauma is an overnight task, Causeway does show the power of developing a mutually beneficial friendship.