Synopsis
A world-famous Anishinaabe musician returns to the reserve to rest and recharge — only to discover that fame (and the outside world) are not easily left behind.
2018 Directed by Darlene Naponse
A world-famous Anishinaabe musician returns to the reserve to rest and recharge — only to discover that fame (and the outside world) are not easily left behind.
Film #12 of March Around the World 2022
Country: Canada
Mary leaves behind her career, abandoning fame and fortune as a rock musician to return home to the reservation. Her hope of finding peace in the beauty of nature may be shattered, though, as mysterious happenings begin to occur around her cabin.
Tantoo Cardinal is wonderful as Mary. She's a quiet character, and it's not easy to get to know her, but as she unfolds before us, we grow to like her more and more. Her strength, her passion, her fragility, are revealed as we spend our time with her. I must say, I really appreciated seeing this older woman at the center of a story that isn't about growing…
Yes! This is what we ask for when we want Indigenous stories! Chloé Zhao can fuck off!
The beauty of this film is its ability to evoke an affinity for the Canadian winter through the lifestyle of the Anishinaabe, First Nations of Northern Ontario. But the heart of this movie is how it acts as a magnifying glass that points towards mental health in the music industry and how artists cope with its inherent stresses.
This was a late addition to my Hooptober list because Amazon Prime carelessly tossed it into the horror offerings. It’s not a horror, not really. There are some vague elements, some light horror tropes employed sparingly. Oh well.
The lead performer by Tantoo Cardinal is lovely. While the story kind of fell apart, she was mesmerizing.
letterboxd.com/st_cecily/list/scavenger-hunt-august-2021/
Scavenger Hunt 77 August 2021
Prompt 30: A classic example of a film-in-a-single-day is Touch of Evil, which is set at the border between the U.S. and Mexico. Watch a movie from a country that borders your own. If you're from an island nation, watch a film from the country closest to you.
This is a Canadian film. It was really good. I loved the cinematography.
When stories are as straightforward as this one, I expect the acting to be top notch. I wasn't disappointed. Tantoo Cardinal makes this movie shine and, frankly, carries the lions share of it on her back. This doesn't come as any surprise, as Ms. Cardinal is always a welcome presence to whichever movie she's in, if only for minutes at a time. In this, she shows that she quite easily can carry a feature film.
The immersive camera work makes me feel like Mary is going to glance in my direction and give me a wry wink, silently saying "you won't believe what happens next!" I'm very fond of this one, even if the tone shifts pretty drastically in the final ten minutes. If anything, it's worth the watch just to see a very good actor performing at a high level, effortlessly and gracefully.
Aygh. What a disappointing way to end my time at the festival. I was tentatively in Falls Around Her' corner throughout most of its runtime, enjoying the pockets of togetherness and quiet atmosphere whilst harboring reservations about where it was going with all this, and then the third act's focus clarification kicked into gear, and the whole thing lost me. Would've liked it if we could finish on something other than the weakest film in competition for the CICAE award, but time and resources are perpetual factors, so what're ya gonna do?
Falls Around Her stars longtime Canadian supporting actress Tantoo Cardinal in a rare leading role as Mary Birchbark, a world-famous singing sensation who decides to abandon her tour…