With intoxicating fiddle and accordion, Blank briskly chronicles Southwest Louisiana creole culture. From a beadless Mardi Gras celebration to no frills Ash Wendnesday, to a social dance, to Marx Bros. style physical comedy, to butchering of a hog, Blank gives each moment same amount of attention and warmth. It ends with Ms. Fontenot of Eunice, LA, lamenting about the changing times that 'life is too fast' for a family (she had 18 kids and raised 16) to sit down and have dinner together anymore while cooking head cheese. Laid back and extremely intimate, Dry Wood shows what a cultural documentary ought to be.
