Saw this yesterday at one of our local indy theaters, and enjoyed it. As far as I could tell, virtually every cast member was Indigenous -- and all filmed on the Six Nations reserve which is just a short drive away from us, so it had a very local feel. The most recognizable face in the cast is good old Lorne Cardinal, who's expert at turning in understated, likable, open performances, but everyone else fit in just fine. The movie really centers single-mindedly on Beck (Dakota Ray Hebert) and her deeply personal journey. It's all low-key and built out of scenes and settings that could not be any more ordinary and everyday, but what's at stake here is nothing less than the very core of her being: that is, salvation. I think that's part of the message that director Zoe Hopkins was getting across. (That didn't really hit me till afterward. Major transformations in a person's life aren't usually accompanied by a big Hollywood-ish splash.)
To drive home the point, Beck has a guide seen only by her, which is the spirit of long-dead Tom Longboat, the famous marathon runner. He's otherworldly by definition, but also (just like the rest of it) resolutely down-to-earth, which is enjoyably contradictory. Kind of like the amiable conversations young Lisa has with dead people in 'Monkey Beach' (2020).
All in all, a small-scale family-centered story with strong undertones.
