Before Tomorrow just had it’s theatrical release in Canada last night. Just like the pace of the Inuit film, this film made a quiet statement, but a powerful one.
The film is set in 1840 and shows how Inuit were living when the onslaught of white men were merely rumours told by few. We first see the reunion of two families during the summer when there is much happiness abound. Shortly after, the two main characters Ninguiq (Madelin Ivalu) and her grandson Maniq (Paul-Dylan Ivalu) head to an island to begin drying the fish and bring Ninquig’s best friend Kutuguk (Mary Qulitalik).
The drama unfolds on the island and continues through the rest of the film as the two main characters face death, mortality and isolation.
The immense power that is captured in the stillness and quietness of this film is intense. It won best Canadian feature at it’s world premier at 2008 TIFF, Best Feature film at 2008 imagineNATIVE Film + Media Arts Festival, Best Feature Film at 2008 Annual American Indian Film Festival and the 2009 Sundance best Dramatic World Cinema Competition.
The film is from Arnait Video Productions collective, which is an Inuit women’s collective that takes Inuit women’s stories to produce culturally authentic and community-involved films. Based on the book Før Morgendagen by Danish author Jørn Riel it the film is used as a vehicle to empower Inuit peoples to tell their own stories in a new medium.
Before Tomorrow's pace is one that is foreign to us now which is precisely the reason this film should be seen. It is a reminder of things past, of a life more simple and somehow more pure.
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I saw clips of this on the infamous CBC the other day, I am going to watch it, just not sure when!
ReplyDeleteAwesome it is so amazing you will be moved, I cried twice, it touched me hard.
ReplyDeleteI have to see - I find Inuit's way of life and outlook on life fascinating.
ReplyDeleteAs a French, I'm still amazed how can they survive such a harsh environment... I was surprised that a lot of Canadians (whom I ask a lot of questions about the North when I first came here!) weren't that interested.
Zhu - yes you will love it especially given your interest. The women who made the film ensured that they had historical accuracy as they initially created films to preserve culture for the youth today.
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