Review: Could The Salt Path Earn Gillian Anderson Her First Oscar Nomination?

Between The Salt Path and Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma, the Golden Globe-winning Gillian Anderson is clearly on a path making her a contender. Could this quiet, deeply moving drama finally earn the acclaimed actress her first Oscar nomination?

Helmed by Marianne Elliott in her feature directorial debut, The Salt Path is based on Raynor Winn’s 2018 memoir and adapted for the screen by Rebecca Lenkiewicz. Anderson stars as Raynor opposite Golden Globe nominee Jason Isaacs, who plays her husband, Moth.

The drama centers on the couple’s harrowing story as they face poverty, illness, homelessness, and a literal rough road ahead of them.

Their journey takes them along the South West Coast Path from Somerset to Dorset. It’s England’s longest waymarked footpath. The hike isn’t undertaken for pleasure—it’s born out of necessity. After losing their farm and finding themselves with nowhere else to go, Raynor and Moth put one foot in front of the other and set off on a long-distance walk that becomes a powerful reflection of the problems they’re facing in their own lives.

The film does a beautiful job of capturing the rugged beauty of the South West Coast Path, with gorgeous shots of dramatic cliffs, rolling hills, and expansive coastal landscapes.

But for most of its 115-minute runtime, The Salt Path is less interested in spectacle than in the quiet resilience and enduring love between Raynor and Moth. The couple is bankrupt and without a home, and when Moth is diagnosed with an incurable condition called corticobasal degeneration (CBD), they have only each other to lean on—emotionally, physically, and financially.

There are moments of intense drama, including a particularly painful scene in which Raynor counts out all the change they have, only to realize it still isn’t enough. The film also finds room for lighter moments, such as when Moth is mistaken for a famous author, as well as a tense sequence in which the couple tries to help a young girl who appears to be suffering abuse.

There isn’t much traditional action beyond flashbacks depicting the couple’s painful eviction from their home. Instead, The Salt Path relies on two beautifully understated, emotionally grounded performances. Some scenes are so quiet that the atmosphere itself seems to take center stage, allowing us to sit with the enormity of what Anderson and Isaacs’ characters are facing.

The pacing is deliberately slow, so viewers shouldn’t expect major twists or surprises. But once you become invested in Raynor and Moth, the film begins to reveal a deeper story with an even deeper meaning.

At its heart, The Salt Path is about living in the moment. It’s about literally putting one foot in front of the other when the odds are stacked against you, doing whatever it takes to survive in the name of love, and realizing that no matter how difficult the terrain becomes, you can face almost anything as long as you face it together.

The Salt Path is in theaters August 28.