KO Review Fractured Land CIFF 2015
A KO Review by Emily Mody
I would like to firstly, take a moment to state that in the tradition of Canadian filmmaking I am of the opinion that the documentary style is truly where Anglo-Canadian filmmakers excel.Fractured Landis no exception to this tradition.Fractured Landdirected by Damien Gillis and Fiona Rayher is about a young Dene man named Caleb Behn. The film explores the issues of fracking in northeast British Columbia, which falls under treaty number eight. This area is where Behn’s people reside. Due to the issues that Behn’s community has faced and continue to face he decided to become a lawyer. The film showcases Behn’s struggle to fight back against the industry that he can see is destroying his community. The film also explores the difficulties that Behn has with trying to reconcile who he was as a child with who has become and what he ultimately wants to achieve. The literal fractures that Behn faces in his community act as a mirror reflecting the fractures that he struggles within himself. A lot of times as a lawyer he feels as though he has to leave some part of his culture behind so he can represent his people to the rest of the world.
I enjoyed this film not just because of the fact that it is a Canadian documentary about environmental issues (which I often enjoy) but rather how these issues were expressed. Caleb Behn acted as a mouthpiece for one of the many contemporary aboriginal problems that young people face in that community. How does one hold onto the traditions and practices that are vital to a culture when it feels as though outside forces are always pushing you to forget? The contamination of the land is physically dangerous for those who live on or around it. The importance of the literal destruction is prevalent in this film butFractured Landalso explores the how the aboriginal culture is ultimately affected by this destruction. I feel as though this film may be criticized about maintaining an inherent bias against the oil and gas industry that employs thousands of people and keeps our economy flourishing but I would have to say that this film delves so much deeper than that. This is a story about a man who has a first hand account of the impacts that fracking has because it affects his community directly. Due to treaty laws the people affected by this are supposed to be consulted before any changes to the land are made. In the film this consultation is referred by Behn as “rubber stamp consultation” and is inherently problematic for the people it affects. The environmental issues that Behn has dealt with on a daily basis throughout his life have shaped the man that he has grown to become. I would recommend this film to anyone who appreciates a social problem documentary and a story of about finding one’s identity.
Check out showtimes at www.calgarymovies.com
Buy tickets for the 12pm Friday October 2, 2015 showtime www.calgaryfilm.com
