'A River Runs Through It' Came To Life With Robert Redford's Direction and Narration

Directed and narrated by the iconic Robert Redford,  "A River Runs Through It" lifts words straight from the pages of the 1976 semi-autobiographical novel by Norman Maclean. Redford narrates the story from the first-person perspective of the author, providing insights into important moments in the story and characters through Norman's beliefs and interpretations. Whether Redford is Older than Norman retelling the story of his life or someone else reading the story that Norman wrote is unclear. Redford is uncredited for his voice-over performance and the end of the movie shows a (credited) older Norman flyfishing, played by Arnold Richardson, not Robert Redford.

“Someday, when you’re ready…you might tell our family story.

Only then will you understand what happened and why.”

Released in 1992 to a swathe of awards nominations and wins, the masterful storytelling, breakout performance by a young Brad Pitt, and stunning cinematography won the movie a place on the list of classics.  Set between 1910 and 1935, Redford uses his dual role to tell the story of the Maclean family. More specifically the story of the two Maclean brothers, straightlaced Norman Maclean- Craig Sheffer, his wild younger brother Paul Maclean- Brad Pitt, and their Presbyterian preacher father- Tom Skerrit. Following along as the family navigates the tenuous line between religion, fly fishing, life and the Blackfoot Montana river that runs through it. As the end credits note, no fish were harmed in the making of this movie.

Subtlety and Storytelling through Narration

Robert Redford's narration is a study of the strength of storytelling and subtly. As a foil, it allows the characters to be themselves, with no need for awkward, obviously expositional dialogue from the main characters, leaving room for the characters, story, and cinematography to breathe. The narration is solemn, respectful, and without an excess of drama. It’s a reminder of the story, the tale unfolding before us is based on the memoirs of the older Maclean brother. As a director and the narrator, Redford doesn’t shy away from this fact, using black and white photographs to fill in pieces of the puzzle. 

"My father was very sure about certain matters pertaining to the universe. To him all good things - trout as well as eternal salvation - come by grace and grace comes by art and art does not come easy."

It’s a story that could have edged on the pointless but instead became something poignant and meaningful. It doesn’t rely on obvious character arcs, by the numbers plot points, or showstopper moments, instead, there is the simplicity and beauty of people searching for meaning, finding, and losing it in the most unlikely places. The movie dexterously handles deep themes, love, loss, family, and the inability to help those closest to us, quietly maneuvering through the topics with a backdrop of river and mountains The only time the movie slows down is for fishing scenes, enhancing the dichotomy of nature and the struggles of life.

Redford’s narration is a classic storyteller, but there are so many variations of that theme. Done right it can conjure up a feeling of bedtime stories, tucked up under the duvet, of princes and princesses, dragons, and happily ever afters. A River Runs Through It isn’t that, instead, its campfire storytelling, of life, meaning, and tragic endings. It takes only a few minutes for the tone to set in, building a sense of foreboding and tensions even in the bright sunshine.

Understanding the Rhythm through Narration

Perhaps one of the most pivotal points of the film is when Norman witnesses his brother has developed his own flyfishing rhythm, different from the one taught to them by their father. “I then saw something remarkable, for the first time Paul broke free from our fathers’ instructions, into a rhythm all his own.”

The flyfishing industry saw a 60% rise the year the movie was released, a trend that continued into 1993. Unless you happen to know a lot about the arty sport (I don’t), then the sight of Brad Pitt standing on a rock in the middle of the river would be visually interesting but devoid of any deeper meaning. Thankfully Redford's narration and strong visuals are there to explain what we are watching. “He called it shadow casting. Keeping his line above water long enough and low enough to make a rainbow rise. And I realized, in the time I was away, my brother had become an artist.” In the moment, dialogue between the two brothers would have been explanatory but it wouldn’t have the same effect of storytelling, and it wouldn’t have been in keeping with the characterizations, so masterfully established, of the brothers. They didn’t necessarily talk, they fished, the silence in the moment is important, it’s a meditative, almost holy event for the Maclean family. "In our family, there was no clear line between religion and fly fishing."