It's about a young girl - maybe 9 or 10 - who lives in squalor with her junkie parents in a shitty apartment. When her mother (Jennifer Tilly) dies from a methadone overdose, she and her rock star father (Jeff Bridges) quickly pack up and hit the road, headed for the dad's childhood home out in the country. As she is accostomed, she helps shoot her father up with heroine and he becomes unresponisive for the following days/weeks. The girl, seemingly unaware of her father's death, begins a whole new life around the isolated farmhouse with her best friends - a collection of Barbie doll heads. She eventually meets a odd duo whom she strikes up a bond with. The one is a 'ghostly' older woman shrouded in black clothing and the other is a friendly young man with severe mental retardation...
Honestly, the majority of the movie is devoid of a conclusive "plot", which is what makes "Tideland" such an interesting experience. Every single character, setting, emotion, or functioning is up to the viewers own proclivity to interpret. Strangely though, I'm not even sure if "Tideland" is a movie that was meant to be interpreted. The objective was based soley on childhood imagination, as Terry Gilliam states in his opening introduction on the DVD. In that regard, I'm conflicted but it in no way detracts from the impact this film undeniably invokes on the right viewer. As Gilliam says in his brief comment, "Some people will HATE the movie, though some will love it". Those not willing to accept such brash topics such as young minded fantasy, isolation, apparent manipulation and traces of pedophilia will no doubt dismiss the movie. No question - "Tideland" is a disturbing film with such a nightmarish tone that I may be difficult for some people to stomach, but those who long for challenging film perspicacity will certainly take something away from the film. Highly, highly recommended.
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