The Stone Angel (film)
Encyclopedia
The Stone Angel is a 2007
Canadian drama film
written and directed by Kari Skogland
. The screenplay is based on the 1964 novel of the same title
by Margaret Laurence
.
. In a crumbling house she had visited in her youth, Hagar recalls her estrangement from her father, a wealthy Manitoba
shopkeeper who disowned her when she married farmer Bram Shipley. Despite her defiance, she considered herself superior to her husband, and treated him callously as their relationship disintegrated and he became an alcoholic. Her younger son John, her favorite, eventually broke her heart by becoming involved with Arlene, a wild girl of whom she disapproved.
Now in hiding, Hagar meets Leo, who forces her to confront the one secret she feels she must take to her grave, namely the role she played in John's death. No longer able to repress her emotions, she realizes the bad decisions and misjudgments she made throughout her life were a result of her resolute stubbornness, and eventually she is able to find closure with Marvin.
, Hartney, Landmark
, and Lake Winnipeg
.
The film premiered at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival
and was shown at Cinefest Sudbury, the Calgary Film Festival, the Edmonton International Film Festival
, the Tokyo International Film Festival
, the Possible Worlds Film Festival, the Palm Springs International Film Festival
, the Female Eye Film Festival, and the Method Fest Independent Film Festival
before going into theatrical release in Canada on May 9, 2008 and in the United States on July 11, 2008.
rated the film 2½ out of four stars and commented, "Does every Canadian movie based on a Canadian novel have to be scored with mournful violins and weeping cellos?"
Stephen Holden
of the New York Times thought it was "a film of tightly assembled bits and pieces that don’t fit comfortably together despite clever dashes of magical realism connecting past and present" and felt although "this multigenerational family history has enough gripping moments to hold your attention . . . ultimately it leaves you frustrated by its failure to braid subplots and characters into a gripping narrative." He added, "Ms. Burstyn’s scenery-chewing performance, utterly devoid of vanity, makes her a spiritual cousin of Aurora Greenway in Terms of Endearment
."
Eddie Cockrell of Variety
called the film "tastefully reverent" and "fundamentally sincere" but felt it suffered from "generational cross-cutting that's both rushed and cluttered" and "would have have(sic
) been better served as a more leisurely miniseries
."
and John McCarthy won the Genie Award for Best Music Score. The Writers Guild of Canada
nominated Kari Skogland for the Canadian Screenwriting Award
for Best Feature Film.
2007 in film
This is a list of major films released in 2007.-Top grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2007...
Canadian drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
written and directed by Kari Skogland
Kari Skogland
Kari Skogland is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and producer.-Career:Skogland started directing award-winning television commercials and music videos. She moved on to television shows with 1996's Traders...
. The screenplay is based on the 1964 novel of the same title
The Stone Angel
The Stone Angel, first published in 1964 by McClelland and Stewart, is perhaps the best-known of Margaret Laurence's series of novels set in the fictitious town of Manawaka, Manitoba. In parallel narratives set in the past and the present-day , The Stone Angel tells the story of Hagar Currie Shipley...
by Margaret Laurence
Margaret Laurence
Jean Margaret Laurence, CC was a Canadian novelist and short story writer, one of the major figures in Canadian literature.- Early years :...
.
Plot
The film spans several decades in the unconventional life of feisty nonagenarian Hagar Shipley, who sets off on a journey to reconcile herself with her past when she discovers her son Marvin and daughter-in-law Doris are moving her into a nursing homeNursing home
A nursing home, convalescent home, skilled nursing unit , care home, rest home, or old people's home provides a type of care of residents: it is a place of residence for people who require constant nursing care and have significant deficiencies with activities of daily living...
. In a crumbling house she had visited in her youth, Hagar recalls her estrangement from her father, a wealthy Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
shopkeeper who disowned her when she married farmer Bram Shipley. Despite her defiance, she considered herself superior to her husband, and treated him callously as their relationship disintegrated and he became an alcoholic. Her younger son John, her favorite, eventually broke her heart by becoming involved with Arlene, a wild girl of whom she disapproved.
Now in hiding, Hagar meets Leo, who forces her to confront the one secret she feels she must take to her grave, namely the role she played in John's death. No longer able to repress her emotions, she realizes the bad decisions and misjudgments she made throughout her life were a result of her resolute stubbornness, and eventually she is able to find closure with Marvin.
Production
The film was shot on location throughout Manitoba, including WinnipegWinnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, Hartney, Landmark
Landmark, Manitoba
Landmark is a hamlet in the province of Manitoba, Canada, located about 30 km southeast of the provincial capital, Winnipeg in the Rural Municipality of Taché. It has a population of approximately 1500 people . Landmark serves largely as a dormitory community or exurb for people who work in...
, and Lake Winnipeg
Lake Winnipeg
Lake Winnipeg is a large, lake in central North America, in the province of Manitoba, Canada, with its southern tip about north of the city of Winnipeg...
.
The film premiered at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival
Toronto International Film Festival
The Toronto International Film Festival is a publicly-attended film festival held each September in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2010, 339 films from 59 countries were screened at 32 screens in downtown Toronto venues...
and was shown at Cinefest Sudbury, the Calgary Film Festival, the Edmonton International Film Festival
Edmonton International Film Festival
The Edmonton International Film Festival is a nine-day film festival in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, hosted at Empire Theatres at Edmonton City Centre....
, the Tokyo International Film Festival
Tokyo International Film Festival
Tokyo International Film Festival is a film festival established in 1985. The event was held biannually from 1985 to 1991 and annually thereafter...
, the Possible Worlds Film Festival, the Palm Springs International Film Festival
Palm Springs International Film Festival
Palm Springs International Film Festival is a film festival held in Palm Springs, California. It was started in 1989 and is held annually in January...
, the Female Eye Film Festival, and the Method Fest Independent Film Festival
Method Fest Independent Film Festival
Method Fest Independent Film Festival is an independent film festival that has currently held over 8 festivals. It is held in Calabasas, California and is dedicated to support the work of those who produce, make and work in independent film and to provide educational opportunities in independent...
before going into theatrical release in Canada on May 9, 2008 and in the United States on July 11, 2008.
Cast
- Ellen BurstynEllen BurstynEllen Burstyn is a leading American actress of film, stage, and television. Burstyn's career began in theatre during the late 1950s, and over the next ten years she appeared in several films and television series before joining the Actors Studio in 1967...
as Hagar Shipley - Christine HorneChristine HorneChristine Horne is a Canadian actress who co-starred with acclaimed Academy Award Winner Ellen Burstyn in the movie The Stone Angel, which was adapted from a Canadian novel of the same name....
as Young Hagar - Dylan BakerDylan BakerDylan Baker is an American actor, known for playing supporting roles in both major studio and independent films.-Early life:...
as Marvin - Sheila McCarthySheila McCarthySheila McCarthy is a Canadian film, stage, television actress, and singer. She is one of the most honoured actors in Canada, having won two Genie Awards , two Gemini Awards , and two Dora Awards among multiple nominations. As of 2007, she can be seen on the Canadian television series Little...
as Doris - Kevin ZegersKevin ZegersKevin Joseph Zegers is a Canadian actor and model. He is best known for his leading roles as Josh Framm in the Air Bud series, as well as playing Damien Dalgaard in the Gossip Girl series and the protagonist in Rock Mafia's The Big Bang...
as John - Ellen PageEllen PageEllen Philpotts-Page , known professionally as Ellen Page, is a Canadian actress. Page received both Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations for Best Actress for her role as the title character in the film Juno...
as Arlene - Cole HauserCole HauserCole Kenneth Hauser is an American film and television actor.-Family background:Hauser was born in Santa Barbara, California, son of Cass Warner, who founded the film production company Warner Sisters, and actor Wings Hauser. His paternal grandfather was Academy Award-winning screenwriter Dwight...
as Young Bram - Wings HauserWings HauserWings Hauser is an American actor, director and film writer.-Life and career:Hauser was born Gerald Dwight Hauser in Hollywood, California, the son of Geraldine and Academy Award-winning director and producer Dwight Hauser...
as Older Bram - Aaron AshmoreAaron AshmoreAaron Robert Ashmore is a Canadian film and television actor, perhaps best known for his role as Jimmy Olsen in Smallville and as Steve Jinks in Warehouse 13. He is the twin brother of actor Shawn Ashmore.-Career:...
as Matt - Luke KirbyLuke Kirby (actor)-Early life:Luke was born in Hamilton, Ontario, to two American expatriates. His mother is from Brooklyn, New York, and his father grew up "along the eastern seaboard". His parents moved from New York City, New York, to Canada in 1974...
as Leo - Josette Halpert as Young Arlene
Critical reception
Philip Marchand of the Toronto StarToronto Star
The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...
rated the film 2½ out of four stars and commented, "Does every Canadian movie based on a Canadian novel have to be scored with mournful violins and weeping cellos?"
Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden
Stephen Holden is an American writer, music critic, film critic, and poet.Holden earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Yale University in 1963...
of the New York Times thought it was "a film of tightly assembled bits and pieces that don’t fit comfortably together despite clever dashes of magical realism connecting past and present" and felt although "this multigenerational family history has enough gripping moments to hold your attention . . . ultimately it leaves you frustrated by its failure to braid subplots and characters into a gripping narrative." He added, "Ms. Burstyn’s scenery-chewing performance, utterly devoid of vanity, makes her a spiritual cousin of Aurora Greenway in Terms of Endearment
Terms of Endearment
Terms of Endearment is a 1983 romantic comedy-drama film adapted by James L. Brooks from the novel by Larry McMurtry and starring Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger, and Jack Nicholson...
."
Eddie Cockrell of Variety
Variety (magazine)
Variety is an American weekly entertainment-trade magazine founded in New York City, New York, in 1905 by Sime Silverman. With the rise of the importance of the motion-picture industry, Daily Variety, a daily edition based in Los Angeles, California, was founded by Silverman in 1933. In 1998, the...
called the film "tastefully reverent" and "fundamentally sincere" but felt it suffered from "generational cross-cutting that's both rushed and cluttered" and "would have have(sic
Sic
Sic—generally inside square brackets, [sic], and occasionally parentheses, —when added just after a quote or reprinted text, indicates the passage appears exactly as in the original source...
) been better served as a more leisurely miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
."
Awards and nominations
Ellen Burstyn won the Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading RoleGenie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
The Genie Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is awarded by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television to the best Canadian actress.-1st Genie Awards:* Kate Lynch, Meatballs* Louise Portal, Cordélia...
and John McCarthy won the Genie Award for Best Music Score. The Writers Guild of Canada
Writers Guild of Canada
The Writers Guild of Canada represents more than 1,800 professional writers working in film, television, radio, and multimedia production in Canada...
nominated Kari Skogland for the Canadian Screenwriting Award
Canadian Screenwriting Awards
The Canadian Screenwriting Awards are administered by the Writers Guild of Canada, and are awarded to the best script for a feature film, television or radio project produced within the Guild's jurisdiction, written by a guild member in good standing, and broadcast or released in North America or...
for Best Feature Film.