CARPET COWBOYS - Mark Reviews Movies

Carpet Cowboys, Memory

Follow on Facebook | Follow on Twitter | Become a Patron

Review by Mark Dujsik | September 14, 2023

According to its own PR, Dalton, Georgia, is the "Carpet Capital of the World," and in Carpet Cowboys, directors Noah Collier and M. Emily Mackenzie make us aware of that branding by first showing it on the side of a garbage bin. The idea is still true, since Dalton remains responsible for the manufacturing of the majority of carpet and other floor coverings in the United States. As with the rest of the country and world, though, the notions of manufacturing and business in general are a lot different than they used to be.

This documentary serves as a case study of that trend, following a group of independent carpet manufacturers and designers in modern-day Dalton. There used to be a lot of room for a lot of competition among small businesses in the city, but when the filmmakers arrive to speak to some of the old-timers of the industry, the number of plants has drastically reduced, although the remaining ones are much bigger than before.

Where does that leave a father and son, who are trying to continue their family business against such overwhelming competition, or a Scottish entrepreneur, who previously made good money designing carpets but is now clinging to the hope that he can leave the United States just to make any cash? Roderick James, the Scottish expatriate who dresses as a cowboy, once believed he had achieved the American Dream. Now, he's not sure such a thing is even possible.

The concept of Collier and Mackenzie's debut feature is sound, strange, and surprisingly mournful, as this collection of slightly or quite eccentric personalities find themselves stuck in a place—because of finances, tradition, or both and more—that doesn't need or particularly want them anymore. They're fascinating people on their own, and with that added layer of disillusionment, they come to represent much more than making and selling carpets.

The main problem, perhaps, is that the filmmakers clearly become enamored with James, his unique story, his can-do attitude, and the way his journey makes for a better, more cynical thesis than anyone else in the movie. To be sure, James is a character, who puts on a good show about past successes, present ones that might not be real, and future ones that may never come to pass.

One imagines the other people here, whom the filmmakers seem to forget about for long stretches of time, might be just as interesting or make just a clear a point about the state of industry and manufacturing in the United States. They're just not as showy, apparently.

Carpet Cowboys wants to show us the collective, widespread impact of the changing economic landscape in the country by way of this city and some of its business-focus inhabitants. Instead, the documentary almost exclusively becomes the character study of one man, whose hustling ways might say more about him than they do the larger issues so clearly at hand.

Back to Home

Buy Related Products