Beautiful landscapes, a charming Tantoo Cardinal, a terrible script and bad acting. It's very long and spacious.

Technically it's quality, with good sound, picture, editing, etc...

But on the story side it has such a lack of a plot that it's easier to classify it as slice-of-life, in which category I often only appreciate ones with high tension, unique circumstances or great atmosphere. The rural / small town winter Canadian scene isn't that exotic to me so it felt quite boring personally, although others unfamiliar might just feel it is quaint and chill (pun intended as always).

The acting and dialogue are doughy and the only real climactic plot point seems almost cheesy in its presentation - not to downplay the real presence of domestic violence, however...

Some audiences might really like it, I just find that the tones were uneven throughout and it had little to no emotional impact... At least not for me.

Anything falling around Tantoo Cardinal is worth a watch. Cardinal is a FORCE onscreen, and coming amidst my North of 60 rewatch binge (that show is so freakin' good) seeing Tina Keeper in a sunny supportive role only has added to my lifelong crush and admiration of her.

The film works its best magic when it's a hang-out movie regarding a woman physically revisiting her past and reconnecting with her community. You can feel the filmmaker's love for both the characters and the beautifully shot location of the Atikameksheng Anishnawbek First Nation. The last half revolving around a maybe secret past isn't as effective and feels out of tune with the rest of the film, considering the odd mini Home Alone-ess of it all.

The beauty of this film is its ability to evoke an affinity for the Canadian winter through the lifestyle of the Anishinaabe, First Nations of Northern Ontario. But the heart of this movie is how it acts as a magnifying glass that points towards mental health in the music industry and how artists cope with its inherent stresses.

Mostly a love letter to the cold beauty and warm community of Anishinaabe rez life in the Great Lakes region. This is the kind of production we’ve come to expect from CBC, with nuanced representations and a feminist sensibility. However, this film skimps a bit on the action.  Neither is it strictly a mood piece, and it falls into an uneasy and unsatisfying middle between suspense and serenity.

When stories are as straightforward as this one, I expect the acting to be top notch. I wasn't disappointed. Tantoo Cardinal makes this movie shine and, frankly, carries the lions share of it on her back. This doesn't come as any surprise, as Ms. Cardinal is always a welcome presence to whichever movie she's in, if only for minutes at a time. In this, she shows that she quite easily can carry a feature film.

The immersive camera work makes me feel like Mary is going to glance in my direction and give me a wry wink, silently saying "you won't believe what happens next!" I'm very fond of this one, even if the tone shifts pretty drastically in the final ten minutes. If anything, it's worth the watch just to see a very good actor performing at a high level, effortlessly and gracefully.

After 48 years of solid supporting work, Tantoo Cardinal was finally given the starring role she deserved.

Cardinal plays an aging First Nations performer who returns to her childhood home looking to reclaim her personhood. "Falls Around Her" is the kind of character film that propagated in the 1970s but is all too difficult to find in contemporary cinema.

The film is also a mystery rooted not only in character but place, in this case the beautiful frozen landscape of rural Ontario. You can feel the wind cutting across the frozen lake. You can hear the creaking of the towering pine trees. Cardinal's performance is just as magisterial.

Anti Criterion Challenge 13/52
51. Someone holds a cat

I don’t think I’ve seen a character more dedicated to the maintenance and pursuit of their own safety, pleasure, and joy than Mary Birchbark. This is not a tale of a washed up artist, or a musician who needs to find their spark again. This is a story of a woman who rejects the capitalist notion of overwork and recognition equating to prosperity and who fights against “representation” as a tool for the modern-day white neoliberal colonizer. She does not compromise, and she triumphs in her refusal to engage with these colonial rhetorics. What a badass.

Interesting character development from a big city star, to slices of life on the reservation. The movie is beautiful, quiet and slow. 

I wish the movie ended deeper into dating on the reservation, economic hardships on the reservation, the mining corporation polluting the waters and stealing land, grieving family loss… this is what 90% of the movie was actually about. 

The last 5-10 minutes ends abruptly with a climactic fight with an old talent manager. Problem is we don’t really know the guy. I think he only comes up for a couple minutes in the entire movie prior. So the whole ending feels out of place to me, stylistically and plot wise.

It was a movie, for sure. I’ll allow it 2 stars for its beautiful shots of northern Ontario.