First seen trudging
alone along a busy stretch of Montana
highway, Dern's Woody Grant is a man who, like his surroundings, seems to have outlived his usefulness, an ornery alcoholic whose bouts of confusion have put a strain on his marriage to Kate («About Schmidt's» June Squibb) and caused sons David (Forte) and Ross (Bob Odenkirk) to worry that he might be losing his mind.