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The Bend in the River

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The Bend in the River chronicles five close friends over nearly fifty years. Starting in 1978, director Robb Moss documents their outdoor, rent-free life during one clothing-optional rafting trip through the Grand Canyon. In 2003, he filmed them again as they come to terms with their transition from being young and carefree to responsible and middle-aged. Now, in 2025, Moss finds the group in their seventies and grappling with the choices they've made as individuals and as a generation. Cathy, Barry, Jim, Danny, and Jeff have now lived most of their lives. They’ve held jobs, been married, had children, seen those children married, divorced, remarried, helped raise grandchildren, dreamed, suffered, succeeded, and survived. The film interweaves moments from the distant past with those of the recent present, taking viewers back and forth through time and inviting candid reflections on what it means to live and grow old.
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Cast & Crew

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Robb Moss

Director

Kristin Feeley

Producer

Lisa Remington

Producer

Shane Boris

Executive Producer

Trevor Burgess

Executive Producer

Joel Coen

Executive Producer

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Critics Reviews

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Ross McIndoe Slant Magazine 3d
3.5/4
For all its gentleness, Robb Moss’s documentary doesn’t shy away from thorny terrain. Go to Full Review Nora Lee Mandel Maven's Nest 19h
8/10
Most of us Baby Boomers didn’t have motion picture cameras in hand to document our freewheeling youth, then growing into middle age, until now when we are in our silver years – but Robb Moss did for his friends. Go to Full Review Avi Offer NYC Movie Guru 2d
A gently moving and thought-provoking documentary. Go to Full Review Peter Keough Arts Fuse Jul 24
Cutting fluidly from film to film, from decade to decade, Moss evokes the process of memory itself – free-floating, immersive, transient, yet seemingly eternal. Go to Full Review Read all reviews
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The Bend in the River

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Movie Info

Synopsis The Bend in the River chronicles five close friends over nearly fifty years. Starting in 1978, director Robb Moss documents their outdoor, rent-free life during one clothing-optional rafting trip through the Grand Canyon. In 2003, he filmed them again as they come to terms with their transition from being young and carefree to responsible and middle-aged. Now, in 2025, Moss finds the group in their seventies and grappling with the choices they've made as individuals and as a generation. Cathy, Barry, Jim, Danny, and Jeff have now lived most of their lives. They’ve held jobs, been married, had children, seen those children married, divorced, remarried, helped raise grandchildren, dreamed, suffered, succeeded, and survived. The film interweaves moments from the distant past with those of the recent present, taking viewers back and forth through time and inviting candid reflections on what it means to live and grow old.
Director
Robb Moss
Producer
Kristin Feeley, Lisa Remington
Production Co
Wilderness School, Artemis Rising Foundation, Third River Films, Bird Street Productions
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Aug 14, 2026, Limited
Runtime
1h 22m
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