CBC had to scramble to fill holes in programming when the NHL season shut down in March thanks to the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. Fortunately, the Canadian public broadcaster has access to great Canadian films.
CBC also ran Hot Docs documentaries on other days in the late spring.
The CBC did this in past moments due to NHL lockouts.
Now with the CBC carrying NHL Stanley Cup playoff games starting last Saturday, the run of Canadian films on Saturday nights has come to a temporary close.
Depending on whether the tournament goes as planned and/or the length of time in between the Stanley Cup presentation and the start of the next NHL season, Canadian films will return to CBC on Saturday nights.
We want to recap the entire list of Canadian films that ran on CBC from mid-March to July 25.
March 14: Bon Cop, Bad Cop (2006) and Bon Cop, Bad Cop 2 (2017)
March 21: Mr. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story (2013); Goalie (2019)
March 28: Hyena Road (2015); The Right Kind of Wrong (2013)
April 4: Race (2016); Across the Line (2015) Stephan James double feature
April 11: Hector and the Search for Happiness (2014); Window Horses: The Poetic Persian Epiphany of Rosie Ming (2016)
April 18: The Breadwinner (2017); Maudie (2016)
April 25: Still Mine (2012); Brooklyn (2015)
May 2: Jean of the Joneses (2016); Picture Day (2012)
May 9: The Adventure Club (2017); Into the Forest (2015)
May 16: The Journey Home (2014); Two Lovers and A Bear (2016)
May 23: Milton's Secret (2016); Remember (2015)
May 30: Dr. Cabbie (2014); Beeba Boys (2015)
June 6: Kayak to Klemtu (2017); Mouthpiece (2018)
June 13: An Audience of Chairs (2019); Octavio Is Dead (2018)
June 20: Giant Little Ones (2018); Rhymes For Young Ghouls (2013)
June 27: The Grizzlies (2018); Closet Monster (2015); Empire of Dirt (2013)
July 4: The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open (2019); The Right Kind of Wrong (2013)
July 11: Hector and the Search for Happiness (2014); Last Night (1998)
July 18: Angelique's Isle (2018); River (2015)
July 25: The Grand Seduction (2013); Jean of the Joneses (2016)
The series introduced me to Canadian films I did not know such as Kayak to Klemtu and An Audience of Chairs that I later saw and enjoyed.
Stephan James got a double feature with Race and Across the Line preferring the former over the latter. Tatiana Maslany had 2 films in the mix: Picture Day and Two Lovers and A Bear.
The list included Canadian films that I consider favourites: Bon Cop, Bad Cop (not Bon Cop, Bad Cop 2); Window Horses: The Poetic Persian Epiphany of Rosie Ming; Into the Forest; Mouthpiece; Giant Little Ones; Rhymes For Young Ghouls; Empire of Dirt; and Last Night.
I've also seen Goalie; Hyena Road; Maudie; Still Mine; Remember; The Grizzlies; Closet Monster; The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open; and The Grand Seduction.
The list included films that didn't look terribly Canadian such as Jean of the Joneses (twice); The Breadwinner; Octavio Is Dead; and Brooklyn.
CBC Saturday night Canadian film schedule for late July 2020
CBC Saturday night Canadian film schedule for early July 2020
CBC Saturday night Canadian film schedule for late June 2020
CBC Saturday night Canadian film schedule for early June 2020
CBC Saturday night Canadian film schedule for late May 2020
CBC Saturday night Canadian film schedule for early May 2020
CBC Saturday night Canadian film schedule for late April 2020
Before the hockey schedule was announced, CBC had scheduled Incendies (2010) and Rebelle (2012) for August 1. These films were bookends on the 3-year run where Canadian films made the Top 5 cut for what then was the Best Foreign Language Film category. They were Canadian films that took place mostly outside Canada; Rebelle was completely outside Canada. Perhaps they will return at a later date.
CBC is running a late night Canadian film the night of August 8 even with the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs: Elephant Song (2014) at 1:30 am. Bruce Greenwood plays a psychiatrist who questions a disturbed patient (Xavier Dolan) about the disappearance of a colleague. Catherine Keener is also in the film.
The potential August 15 lineup features Clara (2016) and The Animal Project (2013), depending on what happens with CBC coverage of the NHL.
CBC is showing Canadian films to fill time on Hockey Night in Canada
COVID-19 notebook: How Canada is faring in the coronavirus pandemic
CanadianCrossing.com CBC coverage
CanadianCrossing.com film coverage
These films should also be available for Canadians on CBC Gem. Some of them are available in the United States. Some of these titles are more family-friendly while some were on late at night for a reason.
logo credit: CBC
photo credit: Mouthpiece film
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