Sarah Polley has been in front of the camera since she was a little girl as the star of dozens of films like “The Sweet Hereafter, “Go” and “The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.” Now in her first documentary she turns the camera on herself and her family.
“Stories We Tell” is a frank look at a family secret. For years Sarah’s family wondered why she didn’t bare much resemblance to her father, actor Michael Polley. It was the source of family jokes and conjecture, but it wasn’t until a Canadian journalist contacted Polley claiming to have the story of Polley’s lineage and real father that she began to investigate in detail. The result is a stunning film packed with humor, sadness and stark truth and family secrets.
Polley’s portrait of her mother, actress Diane Polley who passed away when Sarah was just eleven years old, father and family is affectionate and unexpected. Her father, for instance, reacts to the news that his late wife had an affair that resulted in Sarah’s birth not with anger, but with the advice for her and her siblings not to blame their mother for straying outside of the marriage.
“Stories We Tell” shuns the exploitive approach of reality television—imagine what Mauray Povich might have done with this story—to explore the consequences of a long ago indiscretion. What could have been a self-indulgent home movie is, instead, a riveting look into the dynamics of a group of individuals bound together by birth and circumstance.
SYNOPSIS: The most romantic day of the year has come and gone, and while the rest of you are watering your roses or finishing off heart-shaped boxes of chocolates, basking in the afterglow of Valentine’s Day, the Reel Guys are celebrating Flag of Canadian Day by rounding up some of the best Canadian films from all ten provinces!
Richard: Mark, Canada has a rich tradition of documentary film making, so I thought I’d start with one of my recent favorite Can Con films, a doc by Sarah Polley. Stories We Tell is a frank look at a family secret. For years Sarah’s family wondered why she didn’t bare much resemblance to her father, actor Michael Polley. In the film she examines the story of her parentage, but what could have been a self-indulgent home movie is, instead, a riveting look into the dynamics of a group of individuals bound together by birth and circumstance. What’s grabbed you lately?
Mark: As it turns out, she doesn’t look much like her actual father, either! Yes, it’s a good movie, although the last twenty minutes seemed too abstract for the rest of the film. I don’t think you can talk about Canadian film without talking about French-Canadian film, which has such a rich history. I’m especially thinking of the great Denys Arcand, whose films play like a Quebecois version of Woody Allen’s neurotic New Yorkers, and some of the coming-of-age-themed movies like C.R.A.Z.Y and Leolo, which I think is a masterpiece.
RC: Masterpiece is a big word—literally, it’s eleven letters! But it’s also applicable in the case of the movies you mention. While we’re waving that flag I’d also add in Hard Core Logo, Bruce McDonald’s long hard look at a punk band’s life and death on the road. It’s one of the best-loved Canadian films of all time and an all time favorite of mine, regardless of origin. Less known, but also worthwhile, is the sequel HCL2, an eye popping follow-up that captures the spirit of the first film but is also completely fresh and surprising.
MB: There are hidden gems throughout our cinematic history. One of my favorites, Richard? A Fan’s Notes, from 1972. Based on the Fredereick Exley book of the same name, it’s a dark comedy about a middle-aged guy who realizes he will always be a fan, but never a player, in everything he does.
RC: A few years after A Fan’s Notes I saw The Silent Partner, a heist movie about a mall Santa with plans to rob a bank. It’s an entertaining movie with two lasting images: the newly built Toronto Eaton Centre and Christopher Plummer in drag!
MB: And if you watch Goin’ Down The Road from 1970, the Royal York Hotel is the tallest building on the Toronto skyline!
Sarah Polley has been in front of the camera since she was a little girl as the star of dozens of films like “The Sweet Hereafter, “Go” and “The Adventures of Baron Munchausen.” Now in her first documentary she turns the camera on herself and her family.
