Italian director Roberto Minervini ventures deep into Texas's rural Bible belt, achieving an intimacy with his subjects so deep that it seems spiritual. Focused on teenage Sara Carlson and her rising discomfort as she begins to feel the full confinement of her fundamentalist upbringing on a goat farm, the film quietly observes her daily life with its chores, sermons, and the rare moments of freedom that entice her to see beyond the fences. Minervini captures the natural rhythm and soul of life in Waller, Texas, in a style best described by Werner Herzog as “poetic documentary,” meaning the characters and circumstances are real, but certain scenes are nudged or set up to find a deeper truth. Sara is intrigued by the cross-town world of Colby, a skinny boy who is learning how to ride bulls and participates in local rodeos. Entirely non-narrative, lyrical scenes awash in Terrence Malick–like golden light contrast with the shock of gun practice, a keg party, and a live birth. A very pregnant woman firing off pistol rounds at a target is contraposed with a quiet scene of Sara at a small pond contemplating a pensive dusk. The remarkable communion Minervini has achieved with his characters provides a portrait of a little-known piece of America that is deeply personal and alive.