| Marlene | |
|---|---|
 Film poster | |
| Directed by | Wendy Hill-Tout |
| Written by | Wendy Hill-Tout Cathy Ostlere |
| Produced by | Wendy Hill-Tout |
| Starring | Kristin Booth Greg Bryk |
| Cinematography | Charles Hamilton |
| Edited by | Bridget Durnford |
| Music by | Janal Bechthold |
Production company | Voice Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 110 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
Marlene is a 2020 Canadian docudrama film, directed by Wendy Hill-Tout.[1] The film centres on the case of Steven Truscott, a Canadian man who spent many years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of a murder he did not commit, through the eyes of his wife Marlene.[2]
The film stars Kristin Booth as Marlene Truscott, and Greg Bryk as Steven Truscott.[3] Julia Sarah Stone and Dempsey Bryk also appear as the younger Marlene and Steven in flashback scenes.[3]
The film was shot in 2019, with the working title Chasing Justice.[2] It premiered at the 2020 Calgary International Film Festival.[4] It was subsequently screened at the 2020 Whistler Film Festival.
Reception
[edit]Chris Knight of the National Post gave the film two out of five stars and wrote, "I wish I'd loved Marlene – I was certainly educated by it. But the film tends to overplay its emotional hand, whether through Janal Bechthold's overpowering (and, to its credit, Canadian Screen Award nominated) score or a tendency for the characters to dramatize their every feeling."[5]
Liam Lacey of Original Cin gave the film a C and wrote that it's "a melodramatic muddle, a flashback-loaded, over-orchestrated, and confusing legal story wrapped in a gauzy romance story."[6]
Awards
[edit]Janal Bechthold received an aforementioned Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Original Score at the 9th Canadian Screen Awards in 2021.[7] The film was a runner-up for the 2020 Whistler Film Festival Audience Award.[8]
References
[edit]- ^ Julian Sher (December 12, 2020). "Fictional new movie packs 'emotional truth' of Steven Truscott's wrongful conviction for reporter who helped expose the case". Toronto Star.
- ^ a b Eric Volmers, "Calgary film retells Steven Truscott's wrongful conviction story through eyes of his wife". Calgary Herald, November 13, 2019.
- ^ a b Norman Wilner, "Five buzzy films to stream at the Whistler Film Festival". Now, December 1, 2020.
- ^ Eric Volmers, "Homegrown cinema: Calgary International Film Festival to put focus on Alberta this year". Calgary Herald, August 20, 2020.
- ^ "Film review: Marlene revisits the Steven Truscott case". National Post. April 8, 2022. Retrieved February 25, 2024.
- ^ "Marlene: The Muddled Melodrama of The Woman Behind Steven Truscott". Original Cin. April 13, 2022. Retrieved February 25, 2024.
- ^ "Canadian Screen Awards Announces 2021 Film Nominations". ET Canada. March 30, 2021. Archived from the original on March 30, 2021.
- ^ Craig Takeuchi, "Québécois folk artist documentary wins 2020 Whistler Film Festival Audience Award". The Georgia Straight, December 28, 2020.
External links
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