Graham Foy's debut feature film The Maiden is as good a debut as anyone could ever wish to achieve. It is a wonderful film which treads the well worn path that many films have trod, about themes of grief, friendship, and a coming of age in North America, yet does so through a refreshingly grounded approach that avoids deteriorating into being pretentious.
Visually stunning, the 16mm format perfectly suits the dreamlike quality of the environment of Calgary and it's rural surrounds. Likewise, the cinematography is slow and purposeful with long lingering shots of details which envelope the ravine where most of the film takes place. There are shots which are so striking, they continue to play in my mind still.
A highlight of the film is the performance by Jackson Sluiter of Kyle who, for the first time in my memory at least, portrays a young skateboarding teen who actually looks, talks, and sounds like a real person. He is completely authentic and captures your attention with his intensity. One of my main disappointments with the movie is how little of Kyle we ultimately get to see...
This leads me to my other criticism of the movie which is it's editing and pace. It is excruciatingly slow at times which, whilst was obviously intentional, to me doesn't serve the story in any meaningful way. The runtime could easily have been dropped by 30mins and still hit the same narrative points in needed to hit in my opinion.
The themes explored in the movie are largely about grief, friendship, and belonging. It is heartbreaking and yet hopeful and the final act poingnantly concludes the seemingly divine journey which each character takes.
The obvious homages in the film are not obnoxious, with inspiration clearly taken from Stand By Me and also from the cinematography and pacing of Mallick's works.
Overall, this was a thoroughly enjoyable film which could only have been served better by a more rigorous edit and perhaps more time spent in act one rather than the events that follow it. If you are prepared for a slow and contemplative film about the beauty of life and the tragedy of losing it then you will love this fantastic debut from budding director Graham Foy.
Graham Foy's debut feature film The Maiden is as good a debut as anyone could ever wish to achieve. It is a wonderful film which treads the well worn path that many films have trod, about themes of grief, friendship, and a coming of age in North America, yet does so through a refreshingly grounded approach that avoids deteriorating into being pretentious.
Visually stunning, the 16mm format perfectly suits the dreamlike quality of the environment of Calgary and it's rural surrounds. Likewise, the cinematography is slow and purposeful with long lingering shots of details which envelope the ravine where most of the film takes place. There are shots which are so striking, they continue to play in my mind still.
A highlight of the film is the performance by Jackson Sluiter of Kyle who, for the first time in my memory at least, portrays a young skateboarding teen who actually looks, talks, and sounds like a real person. He is completely authentic and captures your attention with his intensity. One of my main disappointments with the movie is how little of Kyle we ultimately get to see...
This leads me to my other criticism of the movie which is it's editing and pace. It is excruciatingly slow at times which, whilst was obviously intentional, to me doesn't serve the story in any meaningful way. The runtime could easily have been dropped by 30mins and still hit the same narrative points in needed to hit in my opinion.
The themes explored in the movie are largely about grief, friendship, and belonging. It is heartbreaking and yet hopeful and the final act poingnantly concludes the seemingly divine journey which each character takes.
The obvious homages in the film are not obnoxious, with inspiration clearly taken from Stand By Me and also from the cinematography and pacing of Mallick's works.
Overall, this was a thoroughly enjoyable film which could only have been served better by a more rigorous edit and perhaps more time spent in act one rather than the events that follow it. If you are prepared for a slow and contemplative film about the beauty of life and the tragedy of losing it then you will love this fantastic debut from budding director Graham Foy.
