RipDelight
This is a tender, generous movie that likes its characters and presents them as real people, full of flaws and strengths.
proud_luddite
During the summer in a resort area on the northern Ontario shore of Lake Superior, three boys in their early teens hang out together. They include Adam, a quiet boy from a well-off family; Riley a tough boy who lives in a modest home with his grandmother; and Nate, Riley's equally tough cousin who is staying with Riley and their grandmother during the summer.Knowing that this was yet another boys-coming-of-age movies, my first reaction was "Good God, not ANOTHER one"! But there are some films in this category that stand out among the (seemingly) thousands of others. "Sleeping Giant" is one of them. For one thing, Adam does not go along with the hyper-macho talk of the other boys or the milder macho talk coming from his father. There are more than a few hints that Adam might be gay.The first half is rather difficult. Nate is so viciously mean-spirited and bullying that the viewer can feel dragged through an endurance test. This is partly because of the accuracy of the portrayal of teenaged bullies. While it is more than tempting to wish Nate harm due to his meanness, these feelings change in the second half when major dramatic turns take place.Feelings come to the surface during a board-game. This sequence is powerful for many reasons. One is that it is so true-to-life with one character acting as an inconsistent rule enforcer.The drama that follows is compelling and moving thus making the tough slogging of the first half well worth the experience. There are other fine characterizations as well including Adam's father who is trying to be a father while also trying to appear "cool" to the teenagers.
horizonbts-206-628336
I enjoy movies like this as it reminds me of better days in my youth. Very thoughtful movie and one that doesn't have poor humor and tired jokes tied in. True to life story with coming of age teens. We all have experienced good times and bad times growing up and unfortunately most have dealt with dark times or tragedies of life. The movie shows typical problems and growing pains that we all have experienced in some way or another growing up. Some of the movie isn't hard to figure out where it is going, but again still it is well thought out and true to real life. A good piece with raw talent and an above average story line to go with it.
sber-91551
Sleeping Giant is a hidden gem of a film, but its gift can only be experienced when you abandon commercial expectations and allow the film the requisite amount of time needed to transport you from a pre- conditioned cinematic abyss to an authentic time and place. Emotions penetrate through the barriers of the screen, capturing the viewer with both the acting and directing.I enjoyed it. Well done.Rating: 8/10
Howard Schumann
There are more coming-of-age films than masterpieces in the Louvre, but there are only a handful of them that have stood the test of time. First-time Canadian director Andrew Cividino's Sleeping Giant, an update of the short that won the youth jury prize at Locarno last year, may just join this select group. Winner of the award for Best Canadian First Feature Film at the Toronto Film Festival, it is the story of three very different teenage boys during a summer vacation in Northern Ontario. It is not a comedy about lovable misfits such as "Kings of Summer," but an expression of growing up in all its reality and in all its cruelty.The film is set in the rugged area around Lake Superior close to lush forests and breathtaking mountain ranges, beautifully photographed by cinematographer James Klopko. The title refers to the huge rock formation near Thunder Bay known as Todd's Cliff which was named after the individual who survived the 100-foot drop. The title, however, can also apply to the anger building in 15-year-old Adam (Jackson Martin), a sensitive, slightly effeminate boy with a shaky self image. Adam, who does not seem to have an offensive bone in his body, is the odd man out in his collection of friends which includes cousins Nate (Nick Servino) and Riley (Reece Moffett). The boys are staying with their Grandmother (Rita Serino) but would not look out of place in a juvenile detention facility.They are tough, sarcastic, and funny, but troubled people who often seem numb to human emotion. Though the three live in different social and economic worlds, Adam seems content just to be included and his eyes seem to fix on Riley, an abrasive but still saner version of his noxious cousin Nate. During a wrestling contest on the beach, a bloodied Adam hits his head on a rock but all Riley can say is "Stop being a pussy." Adam has come up to Thunder Bay with his well off parents, his mom and pseudo-hipster dad William (David Disher, "My Father and the Man in Black") who knows all the right words to ingratiate himself with the teenagers.When William invites Riley for dinner, Nate has a ton of nasty and sarcastic things to say about parents, suggesting the reason why the boys are staying with their Grandmother. Riley is not adverse to stirring the pot either and, when he happens to glimpse Adam's dad making out with Marianne, (Erika Brodzky) a local fish market owner, he spills the beans to Adam who takes it very hard. The normally placid boy begins spying on the woman, and his personality takes on a harder edge as he joins the others in getting high and robbing a liquor store. Tension, jealousy, and confusion arise between the three boys, however, as Adam and Riley both set their sights on a local girl named Taylor (Katelyn McKerracher), though for Adam she is "just a friend." Though much of time is spent with innocent pleasures such as playing board games, walking in the woods, jumping into the water from rocks, or wrestling, there is a sense of foreboding hanging over the film that shifts the mood quickly. This happens when the fun of playing a board game triggers a bloody brawl between Nate and Riley and when a summer afternoon outing is darkened by the smashing of the carcass of a dead bird. It is only when the boys succumb to peer pressure and attempt to prove their manhood that things get so far out of hand that there is no back to turn to.Unlike films with similar themes in which adults look back at their youth with nostalgia, in Sleeping Giant there is no looking back, only the immediacy and visceral impact of a powerfully real experience. Backed by the indie-rock sounds of Toronto-based Bruce Peninsula and an original score by Chris Thornborrow, brilliant performances by the three young men fully capture the lived-in quality of people coming-of-age right before our eyes. It is a film that feels as if you are watching it in real time and when the realization that our lives can change in an instant hits you in the gut, you wish it was just a movie rather than a familiar experience.
