A slow (And true) burn
Story of Cree woman’s search for her missing sister offers big pay off
Stories by and about Indigenous people are enjoying a Renaissance with such recent and current releases as Indian Horse, Luk’Luk’l and Falls Around Her gaining critical acclaim, and more opening in the weeks to come, including Edge of the Knife and The Grizzlies.
Through Black Spruce has a mainstream feel that should help it attract a wide audience, and a slow-burning dramatic arc that will pay off for those who give it a chance. But it also delicately touches on a variety of Indigenous issues, among them alcoholism, residential schools, poverty and appropriation of identity.
Tanaya Beatty stars and excels as Annie, a Cree woman from Moosonee in northern
Ontario. When her twin sister heads to Toronto to pursue a modelling career and is not heard from again, Annie follows in the role of an amateur detective.
The missing-woman mystery is a staple of film, but writer Barbara Samuels (TV’s North of 60, Black Harbour) gives it a distinctly Indigenous flavour. Looking for traces of her sister, Annie finds that she was a popular model because “she looked Indian but not too Indian.” And she finds herself getting similar “compliments” as her sister’s ex-roommate shows her off around town.
An entire second subplot takes place in Moosonee, where director Don McKellar shot on location. The town of 1,500 has a distinct look; it’s a place where the sidewalks have been paved but the main street is still a dirt road. It’s here that Annie’s uncle Will (Brandon Oakes) deals with his own demons; scenes of him out on the land carry a primal beauty and are some of the film’s most indelible images.
Through Black Spruce has garnered an unfair share of controversy that has little to do with the story on the screen. The source material is a novel by Joseph Boyden, whose Indigenous identity is at best slippery. And it can hardly escape notice that Samuels and McKellar are outsiders, although when I spoke to producer Tina Keeper at the film’s Toronto festival première, she expressed nothing but confidence in their respectful work. Viewers, whether Indigenous or not, will find much to connect with in this dark, moody tale.