March 18th: 9:30 Sleeping Giant
Director: Andrew Cividino
CANADA, 2015
English 90 minutes
Cast: Jackson Martin, Nick Serino, Reece Moffett
One of the most accomplished and exciting Canadian feature debuts in recent memory, Andrew Cividino’s Sleeping Giant is a finely observed, whip-smart study of the
emotional extremes of adolescence, and their potentially catastrophic effects.
In an isolated cottage community during a bleak midsummer, teenagers Nate, Riley, and Adam deal with their boredom and idleness by getting drunk, playing video games, and engaging in dim-witted, invariably destructive shenanigans. The boys are a study in contrasts: Adam is wan and overprotected; Riley is more outgoing and socially adept, but his fascination with Adam’s upper-middle-class family (including the “open” way that Adam’s father talks to him) indicates something lacking in his own home life; while Nate is the most overtly troubled of the trio, a kind of pubescent Iago who talks an endless stream of smack and enjoys messing with people simply out of spite. Enter Taylor, a pretty girl who has known Adam for years (though they’re only good friends), and who seems very drawn to Riley. As the summer goes on, Taylor’s actions begin to infuriate both Adam and Nate, and push the volatile dynamics of the makeshift group towards a dangerous imbalance.
If you’ve ever spent a teenage summer in a rural area with little supervision and nothing much to do, you’ll instantly recognize both the ennui and the creeping atmosphere of mystery and menace that Cividino’s film so expertly captures. Boasting fine performances by the young cast, a singular visual style and some exquisite and insightful writing, Sleeping Giant is a stellar debut.
“Cividino creates a volatile, captivating and singular look at adolescence, wholly free of the sanitized antics of Hollywood.” The Globe and Mail
The Trailer:
No comments:
Post a Comment