All My Puny Sorrows

Yoli (Alison Pill) is having something personal issues. She has teenage daughter Nora (Amybeth McNulty) and is getting divorced. Her sister Elf (Sarah Gadon) tried to kill herself. Lottie (Mare Winningham) is her mother. Jake (Donal Logue) is her father. Her beloved aunt Tina (Mimi Kuzyk) has a heart attack. The family is Canadian Mennonite.

Michael McGowan is the writer and director. It's adapted from a novel by Miriam Toews. It's obviously coming from personal experiences. It's not a movie of action or thrills or even plot points. It is a movie of personal drama. Alison Pill delivers a varied powerful performance. She has her cry moments, anger moments, and comedic moments which she is apt to do. One must be aware however that this movie is not a mover.

This was a great film, delving into the difficult subject of loss, grief, mental health (& it's woefully inadequate treatments) & suicide.

This movie focusses on a woman grieving the loss of her father, while she tries to help and juggle her time between her sister's depressive condition, & her mother, aunt & daughter, whose lives have all experienced the ensuing turmoil of a family members suicide.

The characters are all portrayed well, especially the two leads, the two sisters, as we watch their very different lifestyles, following their father's death.

One is a very successful & talented musician, but cannot face life for her depression, the other is a struggling writer, hoping for a break, but so busy with concerns for the wellbeing of her sister, mother, aunt and daughter.

The acting is good, the characters easy to feel empathy for, most importantly they're all believable - I don't recall a line, or scene, or character that didn't play true, a well constructed, thoughtful film, that was very true, very lifelike.

All the components needed for a good drama.

This is not a film for everyone. It moves at a slow burn. It addresses the repeated tragedy of suicide in a family. It lets its story rest in its characters. The heartbeats are daily struggle, silent moments, deep bonds and literate musings. If it were not for the extraordinary talents of the cast this film would lose its footing but there is great talent here. I give this film an 8 (masterfully performed) out of 10. {Drama}

You can't give this a bad review because it is heartfelt. But I have yet to see a film that even touches on this type of depression. Sadness is one thing, chimerical type depression is another. Alison Pill and her character carry the film.

The film achieves its goal in displaying the multitude of effects that illness can take on a family and the very real endless concern that is required and rightfully present. The film does not censor or shy away from how difficult a challenge this is and does a good job showing how this trauma can impact generations of the family.

The performances are good with a very appropriate soundtrack.