Birds chirping in the distance, competing with the hum of an old-school camcorder. Long stares in silence. White noise. Monarch City has a definite stillness to it, yet instead of serenity it’s angst that abounds in the film. Young adult Billie (Liisa Kaufman) is at the center of the family drama, which gradually unfolds against the backdrop of a declining small town. Struggles with addiction, grief, growing up, and finding one’s path trouble her fragmented family. Unlike migratory monarch butterflies, the characters of this film have stayed put, languishing in old train cars, logged forests, and run-down diners and dive bars. The film, shot in Washington State, is remarkable not for the novelty of its plot but for the dexterity with which it links a small town’s dwindling opportunities and deteriorating infrastructure to a multitude of individual challenges. This link combined with the boredom, resignation, and yearning of its characters makes Monarch City a skilled portrait of the impact of America’s changing economy and social fabric on people and their communities.