Thursday, November 8, 2012

Stories We Tell (2012)

Stories We Tell (2012)
Stories We Tell (2012)
Best New Film
Genre: Documentary, Drama
Director: Sarah Polley
Starring: Rebecca Jenkins, Alex Hatz, Peter Evans
Language: English
Duration: 108 min.
Rating: 8.2
Summary:
In an effort to fully understand a long-held family secret, Polley interviews every member of her family to reconstruct the events of the past.
Stories We Tell is a documentary film written and directed by Sarah Polley. It premiered in the Venice Days section of the 2012 Venice International Film Festival (an independently run section of the festival, roughly equivalent to the Directors' Fortnight at Cannes).

Reading the synopsis for this film makes one wonder just what could be so interesting about Polley's family that it's worth making a documentary about. Compound that with my lukewarm reception to her recent directorial effort Take This Waltz, and I actually went into this fully expecting it to be another case of the National Film Board wasting what little funding it gets on another self important piece of work. So imagine my surprise when it turned out to be a cleverly crafted hybrid made with impressive skill. The kind of film that proves the most important factor of a story isn't necessarily what happens in it, but how it's told.
 
Stories We Tell (2012)

In trying to piece together the details of her family history, in particular of her mother Diane, who passed away when Sarah was still a young child, Polley deftly combines inquisitive, and often quite amusing, candid talking-head interviews with various friends and family; alongside a slew of Super-8 home-movie clips, some real and some recreated so accurately that it's hard to tell the difference; as well as a poignant voice-over written and narrated by her father, Michael Polley, that ties everything together.

It's a highly personal effort that works because of the intelligent way all these different points of view are presented. There's a confident cinematic flow to the narrative, and how she establishes and reveals the central mystery here is spellbinding. But what really makes this succeed is the remarkable way Polley evolves this intensely emotional investigation of a private matter into a playful exploration into the nature of memories and storytelling that everyone can relate to. It's ambitious, very self aware, and there's a noticeable amount of purposeful manipulation on display here as well, but it's done with such a light hand that it all feels genuine, and the overall result is not only enjoyable but also incredibly moving to watch.
Bonjour Tristesse

Stories We Tell (2012)

Stories We Tell (2012)

Stories We Tell (2012)

Stories We Tell (2012)

Stories We Tell (2012)

Stories We Tell (2012)

Stories We Tell (2012)

9 comments:

evl keith said...

Sarah Polley was the best thing about the Dawn of the Dead remake and family stories are generally interesting. I love Shooting the Past and Perfect Strangers by Stephen Poliakoff which use photos to tell many of the stories, so the use of old home movies sounds equally appealing.

365 moviesandsongs365 said...

As a fan of Sarah Polley, I need to see this. I love it when a film is moving. That's trusting that her family agreed to have their life put on the screen. I wonder if she could be objective as director and what got cut out, but I guess the subjective angle is what makes the doc so uniquely personal.

d_4 said...

This sounds pretty fun. I do enjoy a nice documentary, so I look forward to this one.

Christine said...

I've been really wanting to see this. I love Sarah Polley!

Bonjour Tristesse said...

You're right about DotD, and until now I was of the opinion that Polley is a much better actress than she is a director, but I'm starting to be convinced otherwise.

Bonjour Tristesse said...

Thanks Vern. and good observation, I did not notice that.

Bonjour Tristesse said...

I know you are a fan, and I'm almost certain that you will love this. Also, that's actually one of the main points she makes in the film. How the story always changes depending on who is telling it.

Nina Keogh said...

Saw this yesterday at TIFF Lightbox. The cinematographer was there for Q and A afterwards. I had met Diane Polley a few times back in the day and I could not tell what was a current filmed insert with actors! It was incredibly seamless - very impressive. Although people seem to relate to Sarah Polley's beginning in the business to Anne of Avonlea, it was actually a wonderful series called RAMONA (after the book series). She was so little and unusual looking and damned sweet. Her dad was played by wonderful actor Barry Flatman. Many of us (in the biz and otherwise) are so proud of Sarah. She is low-key, humble and incredibly talented! Bravo on this compelling film.

Bonjour Tristesse said...

Agreed, it was a fantastic job blending the reenactments with the real footage. Thanks for the comment and the info, Nina. I'm glad this film is starting to get the wider attention it deserves.

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