ScreenFish

where faith and film are intertwined

TIFF20

TIFF20: Black Bodies

by Leave a Comment

Directed by Kelly Fyffe-Marshall, Black Bodies is a short film on what it currently means to be black in America. Told through spoken word, the viewer experiences the major issues affecting the black community as a result of centuries of systemic discrimination, including police brutality and the disadvantages they have solely based on the colour of their skin. As a result, Black Bodies is a powerful film with a strong message that could not have been timed better.

Set in what appears to be a small prison complex, surrounded by murdered black bodies, the film immerses the viewer in the uncomfortable feeling of what it’s like to be Black. The spoken words describe the centuries of oppression brought on by their ancestors’ slavery at the hands of their white slave owners. Despite being “freed” not too long ago, it is no secret that black people still feel powerless and are still oppressed due to racist governing powers like the police. The film ends on a strong message, as the poet gets shot and a black woman is left powerless to help.

These intense visuals show not only the lack of power black people feel that they have, as but also how accustomed to pervasive racism and police brutality the community has become. Living in a society embedded with systemic racism, some members of the black community have accepted their place as a lower-class citizen and simply accepted they will be treated, not only less important than white people, but even human garbage due to the color of their skin. Black Bodies also shows the absurd amount of power police officers have in America, with a ‘license to kill, with no repercussions’.

Personally, I enjoyed Black Bodies greatly as it definitely felt much needed at this time. Over the course of this summer, we have seen many riots for police brutality on Black Americans. Highlighting the fear and how unsafe it is to be black in America, the film sums up some of this year’s major events, including Breonna Taylor’s murder in her sleep and Eric Garner’s famous last words, ‘I can’t breathe’. The film’s last scene also brings up how the “Black Lives Matter” movement current feels within the general public. Much like the woman who leaves the poet after mourning, Black Lives Matter feels like it’s lost momentum. After not being able to defund the police, they have accepted the racial system in place and unfortunately lost hope, even from its own communities.

Overall, Black Bodies is able to express the incredible struggle of how it feels to be Black in America. Highlighting the history of systemic racism on the Black community and how it’s still affecting black Americans to this day, Bodies is an effective piece that offers perspective to anyone who doesn’t understand the current Black Lives Matter movement and why it is so necessary.

TIFF20: 76 Days

by Leave a Comment

At a time when everyone is looking for answers, it can be frustrating when you don’t get the ones you’re looking for.

Thankfully, 76 Days is a reminder that we may be asking the wrong questions.

Directed by the team of Hao Wu, Weixi Chen and Anonymous, 76 Days captures the madness surrounding the onset of this year’s global pandemic in Wuhan, China. As ground zero of the COVID-19 outbreak, Wuhan was thrown into chaos, forcing the government to put the city of 11 million people into a lockdown that lasted 76 days. As hospitals began to fill and panic gripped the infected, health care professionals worked long hours in dangerous conditions in an uphill battle against the mysterious and deadly epidemic.

Some may be surprised—or even disappointed—to know that 76 Days neither offers any new insight into the creation of the virus nor does it discuss any of the global effects of the pandemic. But what it does offer is far more compelling. Instead of investigating facts and data, 76 Days shows the utter terror on the ground of Wuhan at the time of lockdown. Patients demanding care at the hospital entrance are reminiscent of the chaos of a zombie apocalypse film. Hospital workers seal themselves into PPE gear with duct tape to prevent their exposure. With each new infection, tensions continue to rise as doctors and nurses scramble wildly to care for a mysterious virus that they know very little about.

In taking this approach, 76 Days may not address the harsh truths that so many are asking for. Instead, it presents the pandemic in a way that feels more personal and intimate. By not emphasizing issues of blame or painting wild conspiracy theories, 76 Days is freed up to honour the people of Wuhan that fought so hard for the sake of their people. Like so many health care professionals around the world, these staff worked tirelessly in extreme conditions to give proper treatment to their sick. 

Admittedly, for many people in the West, Wuhan may have seemed like little more than name on a map prior to these events. In this way, 76 Days reminds the viewer that whether or not the virus originated in Wuhan is irrelevant. The people of Wuhan have had their lives upended by COVID like all of the rest of us. 

As we all know, COVID does not differentiate.

Following stories of a couple separated from their newborn daughter, an elderly man who simply wants to go home and a grandmother who takes a turn for the worse, the film highlights the stories that connect us all. Like us all, these are not merely statistics but people with families who love them. 

People who matter.

76 Days lasers in on local wards and lets the stories of both the professionals and the infected take centre stage. As everyone struggles to suppress an outbreak that has begun to grip the world, we are reminded of the value of all human life and how fragile it truly can be. Powerful and poignant, 76 Days takes an event that has shaken the world and highlights the damages that have been caused to a very small percentage of families. In doing so, though the narrative may zero in on a few small stories, we understand that these same stories could be (or have been) our own.

76 Days is currently streaming on the TIFF Bell Digital Theatre during the Toronto International Film Festival.

TIFF20: Trickster

by Leave a Comment

Trickster follows Jared (Joel Oulette), an Indigenous teen who lives his life from one disaster to the next. Whether he’s dealing with his wild-child mother (Crystle Lightning) or supporting his father (Craig Lauzon), Jared struggles to get through the day, especially financially. When his part-time job selling drugs comes to an end, he feels lost within his own unstable, yet familiar, life. After he meets a mysterious stranger, Jared’s world is shaken as he begins to see talking ravens and doppelgangers. At first, Jared is able to write them off as wild, drug-induced hallucinations. However, as he explores the meaning of his visions, Jared soon discovers that the answer may lie in a tradition that he has long ignored.

Directed by Michelle Latimer (ALIAS), Trickster is a dark and mysterious ride through mythology as it collides with the modern era. While the series falls neatly into the ‘supernatural sub-genre’, Trickster‘s style and celebration of Indigenous culture keep the series fresh and engaging. Through her use of colour and tone, Latimer visually interweaves the mundane with the mystical, seemlessly blending the interaction between them. Featuring solid work by its entire cast, the series also crafts some truly unique characters that bring the world to life. (Crystle Lightning, in particular, is an absolute joy to watch as Jared’s free-wheeling but loving mother.)

In this way, Latimer has created a world that intrigues as well as challenges. Fun and mysterious, Trickster is an entertaining ride that draws you in through its premise but entices you to stay through its strong characters and storytelling. What’s more, while it thrives in its celebration of Indigenous traditions and folklore, it also serves as a humbling reminder of what can be lost when we misjudge our own place within the universe.

Trickster is currently streaming on the TIFF Bell Digital Theatre during the Toronto International Film Festival and premieres on CBC on Wednesday, October 7th, 2020 at 9:00pm.

TIFF20: The Father

by Leave a Comment

In The Father, Sir Anthony Hopkins plays Anthony, an elderly but wealthy man who cannot admit that he can no longer care for himself. When his daughter Anne (Olivia Colman) informs him that she intends on moving to Paris, she attempts to bring in a home care nurse, Laura (Imogen Poots). As his condition deteriorates, Anthony struggles to adjust to the changes with moods swings that range from charming to insulting and Anne is forced to consider that her father may be better off in a long-term care facility instead of his beloved London flat.

The debut film from director by Florian Zeller, The Father is an emotional journey into the heart of dementia and the how it affects those on the outside. Though the film features an incredible performance by Olivia Coleman as the caring but torn Anne, the film is truly anchored by Sir Anthony Hopkins, who may have turned in one of the best performances of his career. As the centre of almost every scene, Hopkins is simply remarkable as the fading elder, imbuing his character with both vibrancy and terror.

In The Father, Anthony is a man who is constantly loved yet causes chaos within the home. Even so, while we bear witness to the fact that those around him struggle with his health, we also feel torn for Anthony as he continues to misread situations and react accordingly with fear, humour and rage. Honest and heartbreaking, The Father is an incredible example of what love looks like on the ground in the midst of struggle. The film’s shift in perspective serves as a reminder that the real terror may be within the mind of the person we love and the need for grace in the midst of that understanding from those around them.

The Father is currently streaming on the TIFF Bell Digital Theatre during the Toronto International Film Festival.

TIFF20: Akilla’s Escape

by Leave a Comment

Akilla’s Escape follows one night in the life of Akilla Brown (Saul Williams), a 40-year old drug trader who has decided that it’s time to get out of the game. Out on a routine hand-off, he is suddenly caught in the middle of a violent robbery. When he discovers that one of his attackers is , a fifteen-year-old Jamaican boy named Sheppard (Thamela Mpumlwana), he realizes that the young man is a member of the same criminal organization that he fell into himself as a child. As he attempts to help the him, Akilla must also confront his own upbringing as a youth (Mpumlwana again) in order to chart a new path for them both.

Written and directed by Charles Officer, Escape is a haunting experience that sits with you long after the film is over. Featuring bleeding colours and pulsating soundtrack, Escape visually creates two worlds and then blurs one into the next, highlighting the challenges of ever truly escaping the darkness entirely. Star Saul Williams—who also collaborated on the soundtrack with Massive Attack’s 3D—absolutely smolders onscreen as the elder Akilla, imbuing his character with confidence and humility. Not to be outdone, Mpumlwana is absolutely stunning as both the terrified Sheppard and the increasingly rage-fueled young Akilla. As a result of the film’s stellar cast and solid visuals, Akilla’s Escape is a gritty and visceral piece that serves as a tragic reminder of how difficult it can be to break free from our past yet Akilla’s journey also carries within it an admirable strength of character that feels hopeful. 

This is more than a film about gang life. 

This is a film with soul.

As he grapples with his own inner demons, Akilla’s journey is an example of what happens when our past collides with our present. Attempting to break the cyclical nature of violence and poverty, Akilla lives in a world that refuses to give him up. Ready to sell his profitable marijuana business, he believes the time is right to walk away, even if his business partners disagree. When he encounters Sheppard, Akilla’s personal journey feels as though it has come full circle. His desire to rescue the young man serves as both potential freedom for a youth heading down a dark path and redemption for his own lost childhood. (It’s worth noting here that Officer’s decision to cast the young Mpumlwana in both roles further highlights the fact that the elder Akilla sees himself in the young man.)

In many ways, Akilla’s father, Clinton (Ronnie Rowe), may be the subtle central figure of the film. Broken by his own childhood of violence, Clinton is abusive and filled with rage, passing on terrifying words of ‘wisdom’ to his young son. (“War is a matter of vital importance for the province of life,” he warns a wide-eyed Akilla.) Now grown himself, Akilla finds the words of his father ring in his ears, even as he kicks against them. Whereas Clinton pushed him towards violence, Akilla understands that hope lies beyond the barrel of a gun. For Akilla, his experience with Sheppard creates an opportunity to break the cycle and help someone take a new path, even as he carries his own scars with him.

As the credits roll, there is an intrinsic sadness within Akilla’s Escape that lingers. Though the film offers hope to its characters, this is a piece that shows the tragedy of generational pain and its affect on the future. As such, though Akilla’s past may be something he wishes he could forget, this is definitely a story worth remembering.

Akilla’s Escape is currently streaming on the TIFF Bell Digital Theatre as part of the Planet Africa series during the Toronto International Film Festival. 

To hear our conversation with Saul Williams, Thamela Mpumlwana, Donisha Prendergast, click here.