Jeremy Robinson's Coverage of the Calgary International Film Festival

One Day in The Life of Noah Piugattuk

One Day in The Life of Noah Piugattuk begins with a startling opening shot of an arctic morning. We see a snow covered Inuit land comprised of Igloos and sled dogs laying about. We hear the soft, quiet voice of the film’s title character reading from the bible as we cut to him inside his house sitting beside his wife who has yet to waken up and his daughter who is also sleeping. It’s a serene scene, and soon we see the wife wake up and begin making tea. The camera holds on this domestic moment without cutting, and it’s to the film’s credit, I remained transfixed throughout. — Read Full Review at Pillow Shots

Another Child

Another Child is a well paced South Korean family drama with very strong, relatable performances at its centre. It concerns the reprecussions of an affair between a married man and a single mother and what effect it has on their family, more specifically their two daughters who find out about them before anyone else. The movie starts with 17 year old Ju-ri (Kim Hye Jun) seeing her father (Kim Yoon-Seok), a wealthy stock broker with his mistress (Kim So-jin) who is a restaurant owner. Ju-ri is at the woman’s restaurant spying on the two of them. When she is spotted, Ju-ri runs away but is knocked down by the woman’s daughter Yoon- ah (Park Se-jin) who goes to the same school as her. — Read Full Review at Pillow Shots

Greener Grass

The film is the brain child of writer/directors Jocelyn DeBoer and Dawn Luebbe, both of whom star in it as well. It takes place in what might be explained as a suburban alternate universe, where children turn into dogs, mothers give away their babies to their neighbours, and everyone drives golf carts instead of actual vehicles. There have been satirical takes on the suburbs before, but this is the first one which feels the most alien and apart from reality I’ve ever seen. — Read Full Review at Pillow Shots

Frankie

Frankie is one of those films where it seems like nothing much happens yet what it concerns itself with are things we sometimes take for granted. It’s a very introspective film concerning life, death, and how it’s difficult to navigate both. This is especially poignant considering it is from the perspective of a group of people who have a close relationship with someone who is dying and how these things should be savored and even celebrated. — Read Full Review at Pillow Shots

Varda by Agnes

When the light went out on Agnes Varda earlier this year, I, like many other film fans, was overcome with sadness, knowing that her beacon shone perhaps brighter than most in terms of a love for film. Her enthusiasm was infectious, and to her dying day, she never stopped creating, or sharing her work. It’s wonderful that mere months before her death, she was able to finish one final testimonial film Varda by Agnes to give to the world, and it is perhaps the best note anyone could hope to end on in such an established career. — Read Full Review at Pillow Shots

Portrait of a Lady on Fire

The film is set in the eighteenth century and tells the story of Marianne (Noemie Merlant), a young painter, who is commisioned by a countess (Valeria Golino) to paint a portrait of her daughter Heloise (Adele Haenel). The portrait is meant as leverage in order for Heloise to be married off to an eligable bachelor, which is a prospect that doesn’t suit her, and she rebels by refusing to sit for any artist who tries to paint her. In order to capture her portrait without Heloise finding out, Marianne disguises herself as her handmaiden so that she can get close enough to capture her features. She soon is able to gain her trust, and the two become friendly. At the same time this is all happening, Marianne is making mental images of Heloise for her painting, but she also begins to fall in love with her. — Read Full Review at Pillow Shots