In the lead up to the 7th Canadian Film Festival in Australia (August 2012), join us as we countdown the Top 100 Canadian Films of the past 30 years. We'll be posting one film a day leading up to Canada Day on July 1st 2012. Do you agree with our staff favourites? Let us know your thoughts!
In 1952 Tivii, an Inuit hunter with tuberculosis, is forced to leave his northern home and family to recuperate at a sanatorium in Quebec City. Uprooted, unable to speak French, and faced with a completely alien world, he loses the will to live until his fellow patients and the hospital staff find a way to reach out.
An expert contrast of Inuit culture and 1950s Catholic Quebec makes for rich storytelling in veteran Benoit Pilon’s accomplished and finely wrought drama. Natar Ungalaaq (star of the Camera d’Or winner Atanarjuat: The Fast Runner) gives an unforgettable performance as the outsider wrestling with culture shock, his expressive face conveying more in a look than any monologue could do justice. Poignant yet resisting sentimentality, this gorgeously filmed melodrama brings a unique, moving story to life and takes us to a place and time rarely visited by contemporary cinema.
I felt The Necessities of Life came across with a rawness and authenticity that is not easily achieved in other films. When Tivii is in the hospital you really empathize with his frustration and his sense of urgency to go home and provide for his family. I like the way the film is shot: the 1950s era comes through clearly and the first scene really grabbed me instantly with the natural beauty of the northern areas of Canada. When watching this film I discovered a more dramatic side to Canadian cinema that I hadn’t seen before. On a lighter note I also feel it is un-Canadian not to mention or include an Ice Hockey scene, even if it is a couple of guys crowded around a TV just catching a glimpse of the game.
It is a great story and definitely deserves a watch.
-Tim Mall
"Combines poignancy with realism for a touching yet not overly sentimental exploration of an Inuit man and boy's deep need for family and tradition in a Quebec TB ward. " (Nora Lee Mandel, Film-Forward.com)
The Necessities of Life had its Australian premiere at the 4th Possible Worlds Film Festival, with actor Natar Ungalaaq in attendance.
To see the other films in the countdown so far, click here.