At this point in his career, it is almost reassuring to sit down and watch a Paul Schrader film. Reassuring in the way that there are no surprises when you sit down and watch it. You can expect the usual themes of life, introspection, and uncertainty, combined with an evocative voiceover from the lead characters themselves that brings together the entire film’s narrative. The last several of Schrader’s works can be described in one phrase: a space and a script that brought him fame in Taxi Driver. The pattern does not change, nor does the title of the film sound out of place, Oh Canada, which is a wonderful teaser for a film that is set to open this year’s Toronto International Film Festival.
The star studded cast also includes Richard Gere, who plays Leonard Fife a terminally ill documentary director. He conforms to former students turned filmmakers Malcolm (Michael Imperioli) and Diana (Victoria Hill) to conduct an interview for his book. Archival footage transports the spectator back to the first years of Leonard and his twenties, where he is portrayed by rising star Jacob Elordi.
When the cameras flashback to an interview with some of the characters, it is already known that Emma, played by Uma Thurman, was forever to be in the presence of her husband Leonard Fife, portrayed by Richard Gere. His assertion was that the testimonial is best viewed as an unselfish note to his wife.
Today, Fife is a controversial figure who is characterized as a left-wing filmmaker, had dodged conscription during the Vietnam War by moving to Oh Canada, but on a mission, he made a film that revealed the secret Agent Orange development project carried out in New Brunswick during this conflict. But in the last years of his life, he earned the reputation of a man who was not afraid to create films on topical issues such as the Vietnam War. The picture does however illustrate that over the years, Fife appears to have had some kind of identity crisis. This self proclaimed stance, which began as one of Russian defection, one in which Leonard aspired to become an activist, and which at its peak was completely revolutionary, subsequently became meditative.
The movie is well edited as it presents the current timeline with the past events through the eyes of a single character, Leonard Fife, who underwent age and illness.
He might be regarded as an unreliable narrator because sometimes in the middle of his explanation, a lot of time passes, or there are confusions and breaks that are necessary to change the catheter, and such. He is putting his reputation on the line. It does not matter if the people in that room accept it or not, he is for the first time in his life narrating his version of the truth that Fife believes.
Jacob Elordi is credible as the young Leonard Fife. His role is not nearly as grabby as that of Richards Gere’s, but Leon has fairly successfully managed to bring us the flashbacks and recollections of the long lost life into perspective. There is no question about it that Elordi’s been strategically looking for ways to evolve as an artist. Stretching himself by taking on roles in Saltburn and Priscilla allows him to hone and showcase his skills, and stepping into the realm of Paul Schrader’s bearing with this film certainly assists him in his causes. Elordi has never been so very much exposed, but still, his anxiety can be felt, a boyish man who wishes he could pretend to be anything beyond what he is.
A writer, yes, but perhaps not the kind who revels in swathes of words as the younger Fife does, their focus more on ideas and passion than on the art itself. The younger Leonard Fife appears almost a charlatan when one contrasts him to this great figure that he is seen as in his later years. The screenplay by Schrader allows one to see the contradictions present in this passionate artistic pretender and a man who is still figuring his life out.
Fife, exemplified in Gere, is clearly older and much more boisterous. That is a version that deciphers that kind of woundedness but from a much more chronologically advanced perspective. Gere’s voiceover monologue is confident and does not hesitate to make attempts to uncover some kind of truth. It is, as he puts it, how things are. He does not hesitate to demonstrate his shortcomings as a creator and a man. Perhaps it is because the protagonists of the narrative are without a doubt ex Neo Nazis, ex tortures at Guantanamo but still there is something within Oh Canada that feels more tender than the recent Paul Schrader oeuvre. The softness remains within the film and at the same time, one seems to be able to appreciate Schrader’s direction more than in his previous works.
Someone once said that vision is the center of every piece of art, and this is exactly the case with Schrader’s work.
For all of Schrader’s fans, Oh, Canada will definitely feel refreshing considering it is one of his best movies in recent years. Gere gives an excellent performance and the film has interesting narratives along with themes of self-reflection and the concept of death which altogether makes the movie a very entertaining experience for people who are tired of cliché storylines.
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