Whistler Film Festival reviews: Suburban-mom serial killers and inspiring mountain-bike adaptation, in two B.C.-made standouts
The darkly fun Zoe.mp4 and the mountain-biking doc Adaptation
Zoe.mp4
Zoe.mp4
November 30 at 8:45 pm and December 1 at 3 pm at Village 8, and online online December 4 to 17
A suburban-mom serial killer and her latest victim take centre stage in Jeremy Lutter’s two-hander thriller. Late at night in a diner, while balancing the demands of her job and wedding planning, 22-year-old Zoe (Julia Sarah Stone) unwittingly draws the curiosity of a camera-toting stranger (Emily Tennant). The persistent prying from the peculiar woman intensifies to a horrifying level as Zoe finds herself zip-tied to a chair, the same camera capturing her tear-filled face. No sick torture games or gory violence play out on the screen here (though a few blood splatters do). Instead, the stakes unravel through conversations between the two characters, escalating further as Zoe's fiancé, Matt (Osric Chau), becomes entangled in the mix. Tennant brings an eerie vibe as the cold-blooded Alina, who hardly blinks as she fires a series of questions at her captive, aiming to seal her fate. With a perpetual smirk and bold red lip, she calmly circles around the immobilized Zoe, who Stone manages to imbue with a measured desperation. Daniel Carruthers employs inventive camera angles, incorporating the killer's camera POV, to maintain the tension in the murderer’s basement, the setting for about 90 percent of the film. The film's low-key approach generally works, but that realism becomes a double-edged sword when you consider the likelihood of a 22-year-old balancing a stable job, a relationship, home ownership, and already feeling stagnant in life. Still, the leads’ performances and their onscreen chemistry deliver a satisfyingly suspenseful ride that culminates in a darkly fun cap on the story—and questions our stress-filled lives. AR
Adaptation.
Adaptation
December 3 at 6 pm and 8:45 pm at Maury Young Arts Centre and online December 4 to 17
B.C. is a mecca for downhill mountain bikers, but what many people may overlook is the number of disabled athletes riding adaptive bikes who whoosh down fiercely steep slopes just as competitively and fearlessly as anyone else. Director Jake Thomas’s feature-length Adaptation follows a handful of hard-core wheelchair users who are pushing the limits of adaptive mountain biking—and of the human spirit. There’s Rich Vanderwal, who was rendered paraplegic following a motorcycle crash at 21 (“What makes it tough is you have to relearn everything in life, and most the things I do now I can only do with one hand”); Rob Buren, who crashed while mountain biking and wound up paraplegic (“I heard my back pop”); Fernando Resende, who was in a multicar crash that left him with a broken neck and quadriplegic; and Tara Llanes, who landed on her head during a race in Vail and wound up using a wheelchair; among others. The film follows their physical and emotional journeys on and off the mountains. Things climax with the BC Summer Race Series, the world's first downhill mountain bike race series to include an adaptive category. It’s a risky course even for able-bodied riders. With stunning drone and GoPro footage, the film takes viewers down forested trails with all their technical drops, gnarly roots, and hairpin turns. It’s terrifying just watching. As Resende puts it, “I was scared shitless.” Adaptive mountain biking has saved the lives of the likes of Ethan Krueger, a paraplegic athlete who has one word to describe his love of the sport: Epic. The subjects’ experiences transcend physical ability; they’ve found ways to deal with existence that can apply to anyone and everyone: the benefits of getting out in nature; the need to create life hacks for difficult situations; the freedom that comes from pursuing a passion; and the importance of not taking everyday things for granted. An inspiring film. GJ
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