Canadian Crossing

Indigenous authenticity is crucial, even in the case of Buffy Sainte-Marie

We will not touch on the topic of whether Buffy Sainte-Marie is Indigenous or not. That is not up for us to decide. We do want to pick up on some threads on the impact following the investigation by The Fifth Estate on CBC.

The primary argument is the birth certificate. The investigation found that the birth certificate identifies the child as "white." Bezhig Little Bird/Esther Rosenblum — the primary character in Little Bird — says her birth certificate has her being born in Montréal. Bezhig knows that is a lie because she knows she was born in Saskatchewan and adopted by a couple from Montréal. Sainte-Marie was born before the Sixties Scoop; the story she tells matches what happened to Indigenous children stolen from their natural parents.

In the Front Burner episode, Geoff Leo, a senior investigative reporter with CBC Saskatchewan, told of conversations with younger relatives of Sainte-Marie. That would be labelled as hearsay in a court of law. I have a first cousin who didn't really know our grandmother. She wouldn't be a good resource to tell a first-hand story about our grandmother.

The people in the Front Burner episode infer (imply?) that Buffy Sainte-Marie benefited from saying she was Indigenous. This was back in the 1960s in the United States. The major Indigenous figure of that time was the Native American man who cried when he saw a bunch of litter.

Sainte-Marie did make an impact, teaching children about Indigenous people on Sesame Street in the 1970s. Americans and Canadians knew very little about Indigenous people, other than stereotypes. If this wasn't a big deal (it was a big deal), then why was Sainte-Marie the only one to step up back then?

The details Sainte-Marie gets right about what happened in the Sixties Scoop, talking about those matters when few white people even understood what was happening.

Little Bird shows us the adoption notices in the newspapers, advertising the positive elements of each Indigenous child. We watch as the head social worker goes through the dance where the children are taken away. The courtroom where the participants blatantly lie about the status of the children.

If you watched the documentary Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On (which just won the International Emmy award earlier this month), her backstory doesn't make a lot of sense. There is a mystique to the story but that story doesn't hold up too well.

The story of Bezhig/Esther wouldn't have made sense within her adopted community. Ask yourself if you have that kind of mental retention, especially when society tells you this never happened. The struggles that Bezhig goes through just to find her family is rather remarkable for its time.

Canadian film review: Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On

None of this proves that Buffy Sainte-Marie is Indigenous or not Indigenous. All we are saying is that if she isn't Indigenous, Buffy Sainte-Marie has been the Johnny Appleseed of showing settlers what Indigenous people have gone through.

For the record, Sainte-Marie has denied the accusations leveled in The Fifth Estate report.

Thanks to Little Bird, Bones of Crows, Birth of a Family and countless other Canadian films, your humble narrator has learned the basics of the Sixties Scoop.

We have noticed that Little Bird have included Buffy Sainte-Marie songs on the soundtrack. I Remember You is the song we hear as the title credits roll. We would be curious as to what co-creator Jennifer Podemski, among others, thinks about the use of the songs in light of the CBC News report.

Canadian film review: Inconvenient Indian

Michelle Latimer responds in her own words

Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers weighs in on the Michelle Latimer issue

As a settler, I have no clue as to why someone would pretend to be Indigenous. Michelle Latimer did a good job with Inconvenient Indian and Trickster yet her lack of authenticity was a significant concern.

The vetting process to receive grants going to Indigenous filmmakers would seem to be a good start. The Devery Jacobs response to the CBC investigation into Latimer seems like a good direction to go. Again, not our decision to make.

Music is a very different world than film.

My response to the CBC exposé written by @Kanhehsiio & @JorgeBarrera about Michelle Latimer’s Indigenous ancestry: pic.twitter.com/V3xAanCQuL

— Devery Jacobs (@kdeveryjacobs) December 18, 2020

CanadianCrossing.com Indigenous coverage

CanadianCrossing.com music coverage

Canadian rock and roll documentary makes Independent Lens debut on PBS

Sainte-Marie has done a lot to educate people about those who are Indigenous. Having authenticity is crucial for Indigenous people to tell their own stories. For so many years, settlers were telling those stories with little concern for accuracy.

The stereotypes that existed when I was young — amplified by various sports teams, pro and college — were highly offensive. I sadly recall the tiny "safe speech" areas around the Atlanta MLB stadium during Game 1 of the 1995 World Series featuring Cleveland and Atlanta. The people were protesting the stereotypes pushed by those teams. The Atlanta mascot, whose name we won't mention here, claimed he was afraid to walk outside in his mocking costume. That was embarrassing given that the space was very small and far away from where the mascot would have been.

Things are a lot better, though Little Bird reminds us that "today there are more Indigenous children in custody than ever before."

Determining authenticity is important even with someone as loved as Buffy Sainte-Marie. This is especially intriguing, given that the Merriam-Webster dictionary people selected "authentic" as the 2023 word of the year.

CanadianCrossing.com film reviews

CanadianCrossing.com film coverage

Canadian TV notebook: Fall 2023 premiere dates on both sides of the border

Canadian TV notebook: A much longer wait for Season 3 of Transplant on NBC

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian TV coverage

CanadianCrossing.com television coverage

Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On and Little Bird are both available through PBS in the United States. Little Bird is available in Canada through Crave and APTN.

photo credits: Buffy Sainte-Marie: Carry It On; Little Bird
video credit: CBC News
Twitter capture: @kdeveryjacobs

Canadian film case study: In Her Place

In Her Place consists mostly of 3 characters: the mother (Gil Hae-yeon), her pregnant teenage daughter (Ahn Ji-hye), and a wealthy woman (Yoon Da-gyeong) who stays with them in anticipation of getting the baby once the teenager has given birth.

We briefly see the husband drop off his wife and then he disappears.

The mother wants the money to give a better life for her daughter. The woman wants the baby because she can't have one on her own. What does the daughter want?

The daughter loves her dog and wants to be with her boyfriend. The family challenges the boyfriend so he doesn't come around. The daughter grows unhappy with that as well as losing her dog.

The mother and woman see the daughter as a means to an end yet they don't consider the actual person carrying the child.

Albert Shin builds a quiet film with slow building momentum in his debut feature film.

All 3 women are going through their own journey during this time, though the daughter's path is more obvious. The mother-daughter dynamic serves as a warning for the woman who wants to be a mother.

The triangle (plus child) of females makes a crucial difference within the film, appreciating the power of women.

The film feels slow but the beauty lies in its subtlety.

If you saw and enjoyed Disappearance at Clifton Hill from Shin, you should see this 2014 film.

Canadian film review: Disappearance at Clifton Hill

CanadianCrossing.com film reviews

CanadianCrossing.com film coverage

The film made Canada's Top Ten list of feature films from 2014. In Her Place is available in Canada on CBC Gem.

video credit: YouTube/TIFF Originals
photo credit: In Her Place

Mary T. Moreau replaces Russell Brown on the Supreme Court of Canada

Mary T. Moreau is the latest justice on the Supreme Court of Canada. Moreau replaces Russell Brown, who resigned from the Court back in June.

Moreau is a Francophone judge from Alberta. She served on the Court of King’s Bench of Alberta for 29 years and had been the chief justice on that court since 2017. Moreau practised criminal law, constitutional law, and civil litigation in Edmonton before joining that court.

Brown represented Western Canada and so tradition requires that Moreau be from the same area. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau did say that candidates had to be bilingual.

"I am confident that her impressive judicial career and dedication to fairness and excellence will make Chief Justice Moreau an invaluable addition to our country's highest court," the prime minister said in a statement.

Moreau is the 6th justice that Justin Trudeau has appointed since becoming prime minister in 2015.

Canadian politics notebook: Russell Brown steps down as Supreme Court justice

2023 Victoria Day notebook: Alberta wildfires starting early

We covered the mess that was the scenario for Russell Brown as well as not being all that well-qualified. We don't have the same doubts for Moreau.

Given the retirement age of 75, Moreau won't serve on the Supreme Court of Canada for all that long. Her reported birth year is either 1955 or 1956, making her mandatory retirement either in 2030 or 2031.

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian politics coverage

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian society coverage

2023 WIFF Canadian films in review: Documentaries

If you want to learn more about the Supreme Court of Canada, we definitely recommend Without Precedent: The Supreme Life Of Rosalie Abella, the documentary we saw at the 2023 Windsor International Film Festival.

The recently retired Rosalie Abella was one of 2 justices that Paul Martin appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. Abella was the first Jewish woman appointed to the high court. As we noted, "The story is compelling enough to watch, even if you aren't a justice or political nerd. You will enjoy the film more if your interests are in those areas."

photo credit: CPAC

Montreal makes it 8 in winning the 2023 Grey Cup

The Montréal Alouettes made it 8, as the team won its 8th Grey Cup. The 2023 version of the Alouettes won the last 8 games, with the last 2 against winning teams. Montréal outlasted the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 28-24 to win the 110th Grey Cup at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton.

Cody Fajardo, cast out by Saskatchewan last season, finished 21-26 for 290 yards with 3 TDs and an interception to win the Most Outstanding Player. Fajardo won a Grey Cup with Toronto in 2017 as a backup; this was his first Grey Cup as a starter.

Tyson Philpot was the Most Outstanding Canadian with 6 catches for 63 yards, including the game-winning touchdown late in the fourth quarter with 13 seconds remaining. Philpot, from Delta, B.C., has a twin (Jalen) who was out for the year with Calgary. Their father Cory Philpot was a CFL running back for 8 seasons with BC and Winnipeg, winning the Grey Cup with the Lions in 1994.

Jason Maas earned his first Grey Cup as a head coach to go along with 2 as a quarterback with Edmonton (2003, 2005) and as quarterbacks coach for Toronto in 2012.

The Alouettes were a team in the making over the course of the 2023 season. The team was 6-7 in mid-September and, like Shoresy, just kept on winning. Injuries hit what we knew of the receiving core. Austin Mack was a first-year CFL player who rose to be a top receiver for Montréal. Greg Ellingson was a veteran signing as a receiver yet was out for virtually the entire season.

Shawn Lemon and Darnell Sankey on defence started the season in street clothes before GM Danny Maciocia brought them into the team's roster. Things were so bad for the team last season that Maciocia filled in as interim coach before bringing in Jason Maas in the off-season. The hiring of Maas was seen as bringing in a hotheaded coach who struggled as a head coach in Edmonton. The guy we saw in interviews was thoughtful and appreciative, a significant shift of growth.

Maas and Fajardo went through a 7-game losing streak as the Saskatchewan Roughriders floundered in 2022. Maas and Fajardo finished the 2023 season with a 8-game winning streak to win their first Grey Cup as a head coach and starter.

SANKEY SAID IT pic.twitter.com/GPTPMKsPwW

— Alouettes de Montréal (@MTLAlouettes) November 20, 2023

The Alouettes trailed in most of the Grey Cup. The Blue Bombers had a strong goal-line stance late in the second quarter, keeping Montréal out of the end zone. Winnipeg had a 17-7 halftime lead.

The Philpot catch came after a 3rd-and-5 conversion with a 31-yard completion to Cole Spieker.

Winnipeg win the Grey Cup in 2019 and 2021. The team lost to the Toronto Argonauts 24-23 in 2022.

Winnipeg running back Brady Oliveira seemed to be the odds-on favourite to be the Most Outstanding Canadian, running for 119 yards and a TD. The Blue Bombers took back the lead 24-21 with a Dakota Prukop 4-yard run at 9:32 of the fourth quarter.

Zach Collaros went 19-23 for 236 yards and an interception. As we have noted, Collaros was the first CFL quarterback to start 4 straight Grey Cups.

2023 CFL Grey Cup preview

ONE-HANDED SNAG AUSTIN MACK! WHAT A GRAB! 😱😱#GreyCup pic.twitter.com/hAvL8gdXGT

— TSN (@TSN_Sports) November 20, 2023

Collaros and Fajardo have a shared history. Both were backups in Toronto early in their careers. Fajardo got his big break in 2019 after Collaros got injured early in the opening game.

Collaros got the best of Fajardo in the West final in 2019 and 2021 with Winnipeg defeating Saskatchewan to go the Grey Cup. Fajardo finally got his first victory in 10 career head-to-head matchups versus Collaros. At first, you don't succeed … .

Anthony Calvillo won 3 Grey Cup titles as the Alouettes quarterback (2002, 2009, 2010) and adds a fourth Grey Cup as the offensive coordinator. Calvillo had his own struggles in the Grey Cup as well.

2023 CFL division finals preview

Winnipeg had some injury woes. Mike O'Shea activated wide receiver Dalton Schoen (ankle) and linebacker Adam Bighill (calf) for the game though neither were 100%. O'Shea said the players had earned the right to be there. We don't have the full quote but after hearing O'Shea say what he said, your humble narrator wanted to go on the field and play.

We don't spend too much time on what might happen in the off-season. Kyle Walters is the general manager of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and doesn’t have a contract for next season. "Why would anyone want to leave this organization willingly?," said Walters during the week. We would agree. Other CFL teams would love to replicate what Walters has done in Winnipeg.

GREY CUP MVP & MOST OUTSTANDING CANADIAN!!! pic.twitter.com/nLogr2xHUL

— Alouettes de Montréal (@MTLAlouettes) November 20, 2023

Green Day had a nice halftime show. The production sounded good and you could follow the lyrics. Wondering how many in the neighbourhood slipped out of their doors to listen to the American band instead of watching on TV.

The game was a sellout of 28,808 at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton. The city got to host another Grey Cup, knowing the 2021 festivities were muted due to the pandemic.

The 2024 Grey Cup is at BC Place in Vancouver with the 2025 Grey Cup in Winnipeg. Montréal hasn't hosted a Grey Cup since 2008: that is more about the status of Olympic Stadium. The Olympic Stadium has hosted 6 of its 8 games with Molson Stadium hosting the 1931 Grey Cup and the Autostade hosting in 1969.

2023 CFL playoffs preview

Elliotte Friedman told a story on Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday about not wanting to cross the line with Kevin Bieska over not winning a title. Friedman's story went back to the days of the CFL on CBC and dealing with Khari Jones. Friedman teased Jones about not winning a title and got "daggers" from the eyes of Jones.

Jones did studio work and game analysis at the end of the CFL's run on CBC leading up to 2007. Friedman was the studio host at that time with Jones, Sean Millington, and Greg Frers. Steve Armitage and Khari Jones were the second broadcast team behind Mark Lee and Chris Walby.

Sportsnet is not a CFL fan and the CBC almost never get mentioned. Friedman could have timed this knowing this was the Grey Cup weekend.

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

TSN CFL analysts @MiltStegallTSN and @MattDuniganTSN join @JayOnrait to discuss the Alouettes rallying to beat the Blue Bombers in the 110th #GreyCup. pic.twitter.com/oVWOrKv9I4

— JayOnSC (@JayOnSC) November 20, 2023

Rod Smith and Glen Suitor called the Grey Cup on television with with Matthew Scianitti handling the Montréal sidelines and Claire Hanna on the Winnipeg sideline. We miss Sara Orlesky because we are human. Claire Hanna has kicked up her game and deserved this assignment. The fact that the Ottawa Senators have been on Hockey Night in Canada and then Sweden freed her up to help with CFL duties.

Dustin Nielson and Marshall Ferguson called the Grey Cup on radio. The CFL on TSN panel were live outside in Hamilton as well as the other panel with James Duthie, Paul LaPolice, Jim Barker, and Bo Levi Mitchell.

They replayed the predictions from the beginning of the season. Matt Dunigan said the Grey Cup would be Winnipeg and Montréal. Some even said Saskatchewan and Hamilton would be in the Grey Cup.

photo credit: @MTLAlouettes
Twitter captures: @MTLAlouettes (x2); @JayOnSC

Hoping the CW brings back the rest of Season 2 of Run the Burbs

Son of a Critch, Run the Burbs, and Children Ruin Everything have been peas in a pod as Canadian comedies on the CW this summer and fall. They were supposed to be on Tuesdays in the fall, started on Mondays, and switched to Thursdays in October.

Unfortunately, the CW made a change this week, benching Run the Burbs and moving Children Ruin Everything into that 8:30 pm Eastern timeslot on Thursdays this past week.

The CW ran 15 episodes of Run the Burbs, all 12 episodes from Season 1 and 3 episodes from Season 2. There are still 10 more episodes from Season 2. The network is running reruns in the 9-10 pm Eastern block on Thursdays.

The U.S. network has run 17 of the 26 episodes for Son of a Critch and 17 of the 24 episodes for Children Ruin Everything covering the first 2 seasons.

The 10 remaining episodes could return to the CW later in the year, such as during a non-sweeps month. Funny how we leaned toward Run the Burbs over Children Ruin Everything while the CW audience went in the other direction.

We would fight for all of these shows, maybe not Sullivan's Crossing.

Canadian TV notebook: CBC Gem only place to watch Sort Of in 2023

Canadian TV notebook: Fall 2023 premiere dates on both sides of the border

CW announces summer schedule filled with Canadian television

Several U.S. reports have used the word "cancelled" or "ax" to reflect the CW change on Run the Burbs. We can agree to disagree about not carrying further seasons but the U.S. network should air the remaining episodes in the near future or allow fans to stream them through the CW Web site. The ratings could not have been that bad for that specific show.

CanadianCrossing.com Canadian TV coverage

CanadianCrossing.com television coverage

We realize that divorce from a U.S. network can come quickly. Private Eyes and Mary Kills People have seasons unseen in the United States but the U.S. outlets finished the seasons they aired.

We figured that the CW running shows with strikes all around would gamble to stick with shows rather than running reruns over original programming. Apparently, we were mistaken. Sigh.

Canadians can catch up with Run the Burbs on CBC Gem. Season 3 airs this winter on CBC and CBC Gem.

photo credit: Run the Burbs
video credit: CBC Comedy

2023 CFL Grey Cup preview

When you have 9 teams in the CFL, sometimes 8 teams, you think every team has played each other in the Grey Cup. Welcome to 2023 where the Montréal Alouettes and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers play for the CFL title for the very first time.

The teams will meet Sunday at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton to determine the winner of the 110th Grey Cup.

The Alouettes upset the heavily favourited Toronto Argonauts (16-2) 38-17 at BMO Field on Saturday. The Blue Bombers outlasted the BC Lions 24-13 at IG Field in Winnipeg.

The teams haven't played each other in the CFL playoffs since 2007. They met in the East Division semifinal with Winnipeg edging Montréal 24-22 at Canad Inns Stadium in Winnipeg. That was the year when Toronto coach Ryan Dinwiddie was the surprise starting quarterback for the Blue Bombers.

Winnipeg dominated the season series in 2023 over Montréal. The teams met on Canada Day in La Belle Province where the Blue Bombers won 17-3. Winnipeg blew out the Alouettes 47-17 in Winnipeg on August 24.

The Alouettes won the other playoff game between the teams, 35-24 over the Blue Bombers in the 2000 East final at Molson Stadium.

Zach Collaros will be the first CFL quarterback to start 4 straight Grey Cup games. Montréal has the second-longest streak without a Grey Cup win, going back to 2010, the team's last Grey Cup visit. The Hamilton streak goes back to 1999.

Offensive coordinator Anthony Calvillo was the Montréal quarterback when the team was in the Grey Cup in 2010.

Jason Maas and Cody Fajardo was key components for Saskatchewan in the 2022 season but both went to Montréal in the off-season. Fajardo and Collaros are former Saskatchewan quarterbacks.

Mike O'Shea won't take the Alouettes for granted given that Toronto cost them a third straight Grey Cup in 2022. Until the Blue Bombers won in 2019, the team hadn't won the CFL title since 1990.

TSN

Sunday
Montréal vs. Winnipeg @ Hamilton, 6:30p

MARC-ANTOINE DEQUOY PICKS OFF CHAD KELLY FOR THE TD ‼️‼️#GCPlayoffs on TSN, RDS
📲 Stream on CFL+ pic.twitter.com/s56X5wROlV

— CFL (@CFL) November 11, 2023

The turning point of a playoff game often isn't within the first 4 minutes of the game. Marc-Antoine Dequoy is known if you've been paying attention to the Alouettes defence. Dequoy's Pick 6 instincts have been sharp of late. The 101-yard return was the first of Toronto's 9 turnovers. This wasn't even the only Chad Kelly pass returned for a Pick 6 as Kabion Ento recorded a Pick 6.

The Alouettes added a couple of offensive touchdowns to showcase the total team effort. 

How statistics can deceive: Toronto sacked Fajardo 7 times for 40 yards in losses while the Alouettes didn't record a single sack. The Montréal defence line did record some magic as Shawn Lemon knocked the ball out of Chad Kelly’s hands and Darnell Sankey recovered the ball. Later, Sankey had his own interception.

Lemon and Sankey didn't start the season with the Alouettes. They have made a difference on the defence in talent and leadership.

Sankey made that quote (above) on September 21. Montréal hasn't lost since. The team won the final 5 games of the season and 2 playoff games, the longest streak for any CFL team in 2023. The win over Toronto was the first time the team beat a team with a winning record yet they are in the 2023 Grey Cup.

🚨 NICK HALLETT HERO MODE 🚨

Punt Block TD + All-Time Crowd Pop 💥

WATCH ON TSN, RDS
📲 Stream on CFL+ #GCPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/WARQ38lpI5

— CFL (@CFL) November 12, 2023

Both Grey Cup finalists had a special teams touchdown: Winnipeg on a blocked punt and recovery by Nick Hallett and Montréal on a James Letcher Jr. 105-yard kickoff return.

Montréal has a good defence as does the BC Lions. You still have to stop Brady Oliveira. Winnipeg ran plays where Oliveira carried the ball 8 times for 59 yards and had a reception for 11 yards. 70 yards of offence: all Oliveira.

William Stanback needs to be that solid back for the Alouettes. Passing may get teams to the Grey Cup; the ability to run can win a Grey Cup.

Saskatchewan would have made the playoffs the last 2 seasons if they remembered to run the ball on occasion. Winnipeg knows this, especially during the playoffs.

2023 CFL division finals preview

The Toronto crowd for the 2023 East final at BMO Field was 26,620, a regular season record for the Argonauts at that stadium. That number likely outdrew most of the Calgary and Edmonton games in 2023, much less all the other teams in the East. Their fans deserved a better fate in that regard.

We get that the Toronto Argonauts situation isn't what it was a decade or 2 ago. Argos crowds at Exhibition Stadium and SkyDome were significant in number and intensity. Despite falling short of the Grey Cup, hope MLSE and the Argos can figure out how to draw larger regular season crowds.

This year, the #GreyCup turns green.

GREEN DAY. 11. 19. 2023.

The @TwistedTea #GreyCup Halftime Show is set! @GreenDay pic.twitter.com/6JiNYh1KXm

— CFL (@CFL) October 1, 2023

Green Day is the halftime band for the 110th Grey Cup in Hamilton. This would be more significant to the U.S. audience if the game were on television.

Singer/songwriter Jamie Fine, who has 4 Juno nominations, handles the pregame concert duties. Simone Soman (Waterdown, ON) sings O Canada.

The Built in the Hammer Grey Cup Music Festival features country modern legend Carrie Underwood and reggae star Shaggy. Though Underwood is American, she married Canadian NHL player Mike Fisher, who played for Ottawa and Nashville.

2023 CFL playoffs preview

The joy of having the CFL playoffs on U.S. television was having the transition between the 2 games also on TV, like Canadians have with TSN. CFL+ isn't about such luxuries. That will be particularly concerning heading into the Grey Cup.

The U.S. audience, even with ESPN+, never had full CFL pregame coverage. The U.S. audience would get the 30 minutes or so leading into the Grey Cup and extensive post-game coverage.

Watching the Grey Cup with a crowd at a bar is no longer a thing outside Canada thanks to CFL+. I know a guy who organised a Grey Cup watching party and had no clue about the whole CFL+ scenario.

Fans would pay for a chance to rewind or pause a CFL playoff game. Your humble narrator was watching live and fell asleep, missing some of the action. That was sad.

TSN will have the game in Canada. The pregame starts at 1 pm Eastern and runs on TSN1, TSN3, and TSN5. TSN4 will have the game following Toronto Raptors coverage. The NHL has smartly taken Canadian teams off the schedule on Grey Cup Sunday with the obvious exception of the Toronto Maple Leafs, who are in Sweden at 8 am EST.

Love the jersey Joey B😍

Go Als Go!🏈pic.twitter.com/93FwK90NlE

— Alouettes de Montréal (@MTLAlouettes) November 12, 2023

CanadianCrossing.com CFL coverage

Rod Smith and Duane Forde stuck together with Matthew Scianitti in Toronto for the East final. Dustin Nielson and Glen Suitor matched up with Claire Hanna for the West final in Winnipeg. Hanna normally works out of Ottawa but the Senators were on Hockey Night in Canada. Hanna is one of the better CFL reporters on the TSN roster.

The CFL on TSN panel with Paul LaPolice stayed inside in Toronto instead of hanging outside at BMO Field. James Duthie, Jim Barker, and Bo Levi Mitchell were outside in Winnipeg. We know Mitchell is still an active player but TSN will find room for Mitchell if he is interested.

photo credits: CFL; @CFL; TSN/CFL
logo credit: CFL
Twitter captures: @CFL (x3); @MTLAlouettes

2023 WIFF Canadian films in review

The 2023 Windsor International Film Festival was a grand 11-day celebration of Canadian film. The titles may not have been as exciting as those last year yet some very strong Canadian films.

The chase for the 2023 WIFF Prize in Canadian Film shifted to more French-speaking Canadian films than in 2022.

We are repeating a split of English, French, and Documentaries at the bottom of this page. No Spanish-speaking Canadian films on the 2023 list. The WIFF Prize in Canadian Film nominees are at the bottom of the page. No documentaries were on the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film list in 2023.

Once again, the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film entries were shown in a 2-day period early in the festival. Thanks to luck and timing, your humble narrator was able to see all 10 films in the category. The wait for To Kill A Tiger (from 2022) will be longer.

Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person wins 2023 WIFF Prize in Canadian film

The judges made a bold choice in selecting the 2023 WIFF Prize in Canadian film winner. This may be the Canadian film I think about the most, which makes the choice wonderful in my book.

Pleased to see that Backspot and Fitting In lived up to the expectations. I could watch Pascale Bussières all day long and she was outstanding in Frontières | Frontiers. Had my doubts on Seven Veils yet Atom Egoyan shows he still knows how to make great films. Simple comme Sylvain | The Nature of Love was more thoughtful than I expected. Monia Chokri has a good eye for relationships in her films.

Documentaries can be hit and miss yet there were some strong ones: Someone Lives Here; Tautuktavuk (What We See); Twice Colonized; and Without Precedent: The Supreme Life Of Rosalie Abella.

We know Solo won Best Canadian Film at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival. Our review goes into more detail: while the drag queens scenes are very pretty, Sophie Dupuis struggles with dialogue and logistical issues. What Dupuis calls a "love story" is just intense gaslighting.

2023 Windsor International Film Festival preview

We're so pleased to announce that the winner of the 2023 LiUNA People's Choice Award is Irena's Vow, directed by Louise Archambault!

Join us for the free community screening tonight at the Capitol Theatre to celebrate this incredible film! pic.twitter.com/FzBlXRPtW5

— WIFF (@WindsorFilmFest) November 5, 2023

Irena's Vow won the People's Choice Award. Sophie Nélisse (Windsor-born) was outstanding in the film. Les Hommes de ma mère | My Mother's Men took second runner-up for the award. Days 2-3 are intense with the WIFF Prize in Canadian film nominees. The fact that they did so well in an audience-voted competition speaks volumes to the quality of the nominees. 

Louise Archambault also won the People’s Choice Award in 2013 for Gabrielle.

The 2023 festival didn't have Canadian films that we had seen before. The Mr. Dressup documentary was shown before the festival in Windsor. We hope to catch up with that one.

2023 TIFF wrapup

2022 WIFF Canadian films in review

CanadianCrossing.com film reviews

CanadianCrossing.com film coverage

We hope to have future reviews for I'm Just Here For The Riot, Lac-Megantic: This Is Not An Accident (Episodes 1-4), and Satan Wants You. The Perfect Story and Valley of Exile are Canadian films in name only.

299 Queen Street West was the closing night film. We hope to have a future review.

Adaptation, Attila, The Beast (co-production), Coco Farm, Depraved Mind, The Man Who Stole Einstein's Brain, and Suze fell through the cracks.

Due to time constraints, we couldn't stay for some of the Q&As from directors from the WIFF Prize in Canadian film category. I saw Atom Egoyan but didn't get a chance to ask a question. 

I briefly waved to Maxime Giroux, who was there in 2022 for Norbourg. Turns out Giroux was one of the judges for the 2023 WIFF Prize in Canadian film. 

We were not comped for the 2023 festival pass unlike the 2022 festival pass. Disclosure is paramount.

photos credit: me
Twitter capture: @WindsorFilmFest

Overview English French Documentaries

2023 WIFF Canadian films in review: English

The strength of the English language Canadian film lineup in 2022 was in the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film category but not in 2023. Some outstanding picks in the regular realm of Canadian films this year. Nothing as depressing as Hands That Bind from 2022.

Backspot This film doesn't factor in a whole lot other than cheerleading but is strong enough that you don't care. Riley (Devery Jacobs) and Amanda (2023 TIFF Rising Star Kudakwashe Rutendo) are cheerleaders in a relationship who yearn to be with the cool group: Thunderhawks. Riley, Amanda, and Rachel (Noa Diberto) get that big break but the intense pressure of the cool group creates issues and concerns. A clever use of Riley messing with her eyebrows to showcase her anxiety. American actor Evan Rachel Wood is perfectly cast as the cold, intense cheerleader coach. Thomas Antony Olajide is really good as the assistant coach. Director D. W. Waterson, with a screenplay by Joanne Sarazen, gives us intimate shots of the pressures from cheerleading. The film delivers well at a strong pace, not trying to be anything other than what it is.

Fitting In Molly McGlynn (Mary Goes Round) is back with her second feature film telling tough stories. Lindy (American actor Maddie Ziegler) is 16 and hasn't had her period yet. Turns out Lindy has MRKH syndrome where she doesn't have a normal vagina. Lindy's mother Rita (Emily Hampshire) has her own health issues and is gracious in supporting Lindy. The film is upfront with steps taken by Lindy to improve her vagina in hopes of having sex with Adam (D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai). The subject is serious and handled well and entertaining by McGlynn, who does not hold back punches. Djouliet Amara is wonderful as Vivian, Lindy's best friend. Hampshire gets to be a distinct character and not just a "mom."

My Animal A mostly dark film set in Northern Ontario with a likable main female character who turns into a werewolf falling for a female figure skater. Sounds like a wonderful Canadian horror film. Unfortunately, the buildup lasts through much of the film. Bobbi Salvör Menuez as the lycanthropic teenager and Amandla Stenberg as the figure skater are good in a limited script from Jae Matthews and a feature directorial debut from Jacqueline Castel. Stephen McHattie is the dad who understands his daughter very well. Even McHattie isn't sure what to do with the script. A great setup followed by a film that is quite frankly boring and not scary.

I Don't Know Who You Are This is an important yet a far from perfect film. The story is wonderful and based upon real experiences. The tone and intimacy is spot on in so many ways. You want to root for the lead character but the way the story goes makes that so difficult. Benjamin (Mark Clennon) is starting a new relationship but hasn't had sex with his new partner. Benjamin gets sexually assaulted and has financial trouble coming up with the $900 he needs to pay for post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) to protect himself from HIV. M. H. Murray directed the film and co-wrote the script with Clennon and Victoria Long. The sexual assault scene feels false as no big city street aware person would stop the way he does before the sexual assault. The scenes with the pharmacist stick out like bad sore thumbs. A few other scenes are problematic. Most of the film is worth watching but this film could have been so much better.

Canadian film review: Pogey Beach

Who's Yer Father? If you loved Pogey Beach, you will enjoy this film. Jeremy Larter is back with his rural Prince Edward Island humor. Larry Constable (Chris Locke) is an incompetent private investigator who gets hired to look into why he is losing lobster sales. Rhonda Perry (Susan Kent) is a convenience store owner who ends up working with Constable on multiple cases. The film knows its lane and speed: jokes such as Constable posting his name and face on the side of his van. Jess Salgueiro, Matt Wells, and Kaniehtiio Horn are some of the key actors on the film. Everyone involved is having fun and that shows in the final work. You may not laugh too loud yet there are a lot of fun chuckles in the film.

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film

BlackBerry was covered in an earlier review.

Irena's Vow Sophie Nélisse is the primary reason to see this film. The film tells the true story of Irena Gut Opdyke (Nélisse), a Polish woman who works as a housekeeper for a Nazi officer. Gut hides the Jewish workers she previously supervised. There is an intriguing abortion point within the plot. The story from Dan Gordon based from his play is very straightforward. Louise Archambault, who also directed One Summer in the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film, makes good use of the tight spaces within the house. This is the most likely within this category to get a wide release.

Seven Veils Amanda Seyfried (Chloe) is reunited with Atom Egoyan. Seyfried's character is dealing with her own trauma while working on a revision of the opera Salome. Egoyan incorporates the Me Too movement with the constant need for social media material. Rebecca Liddiard and Vinessa Antoine shine in secondary roles; their characters should also be in a separate film. If you thought Egoyan had slipped with films such as Guest of Honour, this film is a nice, solid comeback. The film is highly thoughtful and complex. Like Irena's Vow, this may be more visible on the U.S. side at some point. 

Canadian film review: BlackBerry

photo credit: Backspot

Overview English French Documentaries

2023 WIFF Canadian films in review: French

Monia Chokri has another film in the 2023 Windsor International Film Festival. Louise Archambault had 2 films competing for the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film but only 1 in French.

Steve Laplante was in 2 films in the competition. François Arnaud only had 1 film this year. There were 7 French-speaking films in the 2023 version of the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film versus 2 in 2022.

Les Jours heureux | Days Of Happiness There isn't much happiness in this film. Emma (Sophie Desmarais) is a conductor who battles the toxic relationship with her father and agent (Sylvain Marcel). Emma is also trying to figure out her relationship with Naëlle (Nour Belkhiria), a musician in the orchestra. She is also dealing with finding her comfort level with ambition, part of the struggle with her father. Writer/director Chloé Robichaud also had Desmarais as the lead in Sarah préfère la course | Sarah Prefers to Run (2013) and the chemistry shows. A strong film about an uncomfortable topic.

Une femme respectable | A Respectable Woman Rose Lemay (Hélène Florent) has an intriguing option presented to her in Trois-Rivières, Quebec in the 1930s. Rose is encouraged to take back her ex-husband Paul-Émile (Martin Dubreuil) after his mistress dies. She agrees for the sake of the 3 daughters from the subsequent relationship and wants no part of any sort of martial relations with Paul-Émile. The film might seem like a molasses slow story from a more naive time but the script from writer/director Bernard Émond is surprisingly intricate. This film is worth the wait to the end.

23 décembre | Two Days Before Christmas A light-hearted, intertwined story about family conflict and drama heading into the Christmas holiday. Beautiful shots of Montréal and Quebec City with a mix of Charlevoix are in this film. The Château Frontenac is truly a co-star in the film. This film won the Golden Reel award for 2022 based from the late run within the year. The film feels like a long sleigh ride through the Quebec winter.

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film

Simple comme Sylvain | The Nature of Love Monia Chokri is back in the writing and directing roles (as well as acting) about Sophie (Magalie Lépine-Blondeau) who has a partner in Xavier (Francis-William Rhéaume) who is not so exciting. Sylvain (Pierre-Yves Cardinal) is doing construction on their cottage and offers temptation for Sophie. Chokri shoots the romantic scenes with the understanding that Sophie's pleasure is the focal point. This is why female directors are so important. Chokri smartly casts herself and Steve Laplante, who starred in Babysitter (2022), which Chokri starred and directed, as the steadily married couple and close friends. Chokri wisely isn't obvious as to where the film will go in the path of finding love.

Frontières | Frontiers The film is a psychological drama focused on Diane Messier (Pascale Bussières) who is slowly slipping away from reality. She hears sounds and worries about making sure there are enough locks on the doors. We know there was an accident that affected the family that killed the patriarch of the family. Angèle (Micheline Lanctôt), the matriarch, returns from Florida to the Eastern Townships to take care of the family, including Diane's sisters, Carmen and Julie. Writer and director Guy Édoin gives us really interesting characters that are more fun to watch than the story itself. We are partial to Bussières as an actor so that helped my interest in the film. This plot does a lot better in these hands than in the multiple notes style of big budget American films and Édoin delivers a strong finish to the mystery within the film.

Vampire humaniste cherche suicidaire consentant | Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person The premise of this film, well, may seem off-putting yet Ariane Louis-Seize hits the notes exactly as they should be played. Sasha (Sara Montpetit) is a teenage vampire yet her fangs haven't developed. Sasha also have quandaries about, well, biting people's necks. Sasha meets Paul (Félix-Antoine Bénard), a boy who doesn't like his life as it is and is contemplating suicide. Sasha offers Paul a dying wish and that is when the film turns. The casting of the family is spot on, especially Steve Laplante. This is not a typical vampire film in so many ways. The fact that this film won the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film is an indication of something more thoughtful in a film. Keep your mind and heart open and you will appreciate this film.

Les Hommes de ma mère | My Mother's Men The premise of this film feels corny on the surface. Elsie (Léane Labrèche-Dor), a young woman, has to fulfill her mother's (Anne-Marie Cadieux) dying wishes to give part of the ashes to each of her 5 ex-husbands. Elsie has her own issues, including her father (Patrick Huard). Elsie's journey also helps her with some of those issues. Colm Feore plays one of her stepfathers. Director Anik Jean said in a Q&A that her husband worked on Bon Cop, Bad Cop, so the fact that Huard and Feore are in the film is a nice nod. Writer Maryse Latendresse gives us poignant stories without being too sappy. Your humble narrator did cry toward the end of the film so that should count for something.

Le Plongeur | The Dishwasher The film starts out as an intriguing character study about Stéphane (Henri Richer-Picard), a gambling addict turned dishwasher. If you have been young and worked in a restaurant, you might recognize a number of the characters in this film. Bonnie (Joan Hart) fits into Montréal in that she is an Anglophone who understands French but doesn't speak the language well. Director Francis Leclerc, who co-wrote the script with Éric K. Boulianne and Stéphane Larue (who wrote the semi-autobiographical novel), makes us feel like we are in the kitchen in an intimate fashion. The major flaw to the film is the length at 127 minutes is at least 35 minutes too long. The ending is good; cutting the previous 30-35 minutes means you wouldn't miss much. Start watching and stop when you get tired of what is happening.

Solo Come for the drag queens; stay away from the gaslighting. The drag queen scenes are lovely and wonderful but unfortunately writer/director Sophie Dupuis gives us a lot of fake drama in what Dupuis calls a "love story." The love, such as it is, is very one-sided as Simon (Théodore Pellerin) puts up with a lot of gaslighting from Olivier (French actor Félix Maritaud). The gaslighting wouldn't be so bad but there is no growth in Simon's reaction to said gaslighting. Simon's obsession with his less than present mother (Anne-Marie Cadieux) has potential as a subplot but Dupuis doesn't spend much dialogue on this topic. The script starts thoughts and doesn't finish them. The "supportive" parental figures (father and stepmother) get a single scene and their characters don't even have a dimension. Maude (Alice Moreault) starts out a decently written character but Dupuis forgets about her mostly in the latter part of the film. Like Chien de Garde, there is little here to love other than Pellerin, one of Canada's best young actors, though the drag queen scenes make this a slightly better film than her debut.

Le temps d'un été | One Summer Marc Côté (Patrice Robitaille) has tended to the poor and the homeless as a street chaplain and parish priest in Montréal. Côté inherits a cottage that reminds him of the tragic loss of his father. He takes a group of homeless people and transports them to the cottage. Conflict arises from the group being fish out of water as well as hard feelings from the property's longtime caretaker François Riendeau (Sébastien Ricard), who believes he deserves the property. The pace of the film is mostly laid-back, which reflects the cottage lifestyle. The script from Marie Vien does a good job at humanizing the less fortunate without making them into some Disney type characters. Louise Archambault also directed Irena's Vow as nominees for the WIFF Prize in Canadian Film.

photo credit: Simple comme Sylvain | The Nature of Love

Overview English French Documentaries

2023 WIFF Canadian films in review: Documentaries

We got some rather remarkable Canadian documentaries in the 2023 Windsor International Film Festival. The WIFF Prize in Canadian Film category had zero documentaries this year.

Someone Lives Here Documentaries might cross over more if they had solutions instead of focusing only on problems. Khaleel Seivwright, a Toronto carpenter, built private shelters for homeless people during the COVID-19 pandemic. The shelters use the person's body heat to warm up the space. Brilliant idea. Yet we see time and time where the Toronto city government fights back against the shelters. Director Zack Russell focuses on the battle as well as how well the shelters work and the dignity they provide. The documentary is minimalist, like the shelters themselves, and smartly doesn't extend its stay.

Swan Song The documentary on National Ballet of Canada artistic director and former dancer Karen Kain is more about the lead up to her final ballet before her retirement than the impact Kain had on the ballet company. Director Chelsea McMullan chose to focus on how a large ballet comes together, especially for a show such as Swan Lake. You will learn more about Kain from the Q episode with Neve Campbell (executive producer of the film and student of Kain at the National Ballet of Canada) than you will from the film. That documentary would be worth doing as well as this one. Worth the watch but you miss wanting to know more about Kain. There is a 4-part TV version airing on CBC and CBC Gem.

Tautuktavuk (What We See) This is a story of 2 sisters yet they aren't really sisters. Co-directors Carol Kunnuk and Lucy Tulugarjuk tell us stories about Indigenous women and the trauma they suffer. The elder sister Saqpinak (Kunnuk) is in Iqaluit in Nunavut while the younger sister Uyarak (Tulugarjuk) is in Montréal. They communicate mostly by Zoom like during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eventually Uyarak travels to Iqaluit. They share more trauma in person, especially domestic abuse and childhood sexual abuse. The stories feel real and you might not even know they aren't really sisters. A film to think about long after you see it.

Rojek was covered in an earlier review.

Twice Colonized Aaju Peter grew up in Greenland and is fighting for Indigenous representation in European matters. The twice colonized is about Denmark (over Greenland) and Canada (over its Indigenous population). The film covers a lot of ground: informative and legitimately entertaining. The comparisons between the circumstances are eye-opening and not a hindrance. Where Swan Song has little to say about its subject, this film gives us a nice balance between the individual and what she is accomplishing. One of the best examples of showing Indigenous concerns in multiple areas.

Without Precedent: The Supreme Life Of Rosalie Abella The recently retired Rosalie Abella is not the RBG of Canada. Turns out Abella has an amazing story before and after she joined the Supreme Court of Canada. She was the first Jewish woman appointed to the high court. Brian Mulroney appointed Abella to the Court of Appeals and Paul Martin appointed her to the Supreme Court, so this isn't partisan. The story is compelling enough to watch, even if you aren't a justice or political nerd. You will enjoy the film more if your interests are in those areas.

Forest For The Trees: The Tree Planters We all need tree planters, especially with forest fires. Tree planting is hard physical work. The film dives into the psyches of why people pick up tree planting. Most documentarians don't put themselves within the film. Director Rita Leistner does so and it works. We learn fun facts, such as tree planters burn 8,000 calories a day. Nice drawings help guide the film. Had doubts this topic would be interesting but was surprised how well this earned my attention.

You Can Call Me Roger This film covers the basics of Assembly of First Nations regional Chief Roger Joseph Augustine. If you know little about the history of aboriginal people in Canada, you will get a strong education. A residential school survivor, his ascent into leadership took many years and hardships along the way. For example, we learn that Indigenous veterans weren’t able to participate fully in Remembrance Day ceremonies.

Lebanese Burger Mafia A carefree look at the staying power and disorganization that are the Burger Baron restaurants in Alberta and elsewhere. The chain wasn't founded by people of Lebanese descent but somehow immigrants from Lebanon came over and dominated the chain. Known for its secret mushroom sauce recipe (Campbell's mushroom soup is a key ingredient) yet not every location had the same menu items. An interesting story even if you have never eaten at a Burger Baron.

Canadian film case study: Rojek

WIFF Prize in Canadian Film

We tried really hard to see To Kill a Tiger from the 2022 competition. We thought we could watch the film on Canadian soil through the National Film Board (NFB) but that was not an option. We don't give up easily.

photo credit: Someone Lives Here film

Overview English French Documentaries