I dunno if this is ethical - & I'm not even sure that I care - but having just seen this beautifully-shot & highly affecting lil gem for the 2nd time, I must take issue with any reviewer who goes out of their way to trash it with such unaccountable "HATE" that I cannot in good conscience leave undebated..
(To do so would feel like a crime - & I ain'T the criminal here!)
Course, this film has a very clear - REAL LIFE - premise - one that's close to my heart, being a born-&-bred BCer whose BF is back in my good books BECAUSE he made a point of hitting 'Record' specially for me (unaware I'd seen it once before).
But I happily watched it again - not least since the film's salient points (eg. 1st Nations' gallant fight to defend Earth's last-bastion biôme of unspoiled nature in its rarely-seen prime VS. #BigOil's Goliathan irreversible harms) are even more prescient today..
Presented in a pared-down plot-line tightened by the urgency of kayaking-to-the-hearing-on-time, the viewer's put smack in the midst of a family's dynamics, like one of the characters. This sense of immediacy - of being among real people on an important mission - is heightened by the true-to-life authenticity of uncanny actors, along with masterful camerawork that keeps us closely feeling everything, intimately. Such an inspired departure from Hollywood-fake is, for me, a breath of fresh air..
As is Ta'kaiya Blaney's innate portrayal of Ella, the 14-year-old tasked by her recently-deceased fond uncle to speak out against oil tankers travelling the Inlet: feisty yet down-to-earth - sings like an angel - & proves her uncle's wisdom choosing her as Klemtu's eloquent defender..
Equally award-worthy is the cinematography, for capturing with breathtaking clarity the unimaginably wondrous beauty of BC's coastal waters & biodiverse shores - with heart-stopping views of native wildlife like the herd of honking sea lions that amplify Nature's unequivocal case (/DIVINE RIGHT) in this fight VS. Humans' lesser instincts: we're made a part of their sacred trip, setbacks & all, & held my rapt attention start to end..
* * * *
[It's telling that the "extreme hate" reviewer repeatedly mentions a character that doesn't even exist: I.e. There's no "teacher" portrayed in this movie!! - proving they barely saw what they were watching, yet managed to work up a nasty hating frenzy that actually rec'd 6 'likes' by fellow sellouts: SAD]
