Whole New Thing

Wow, this is a really thoughtful, well-made coming-of-age film. With a sea of dreck in this genre flooding the market, it is refreshing to see such a well written, sincerely performed narrative that feels so real and personal. Set in snowy Nova Scotia, the story of a bookish 13 year old named Emerson falling in love with his male school teacher (who is gay), might easily veer toward the distasteful, but this film never does. The performances are honest and heartfelt and the storyline goes to some unexpected places, contributing nicely to it's indy feel. There are a few moments that might have been more thoroughly explored (Emerson's relationship with an geeky school friend, the obvious direction of his awakening sexuality, is given short shrift.) But overall, this was an intelligently made, sweet and sincere film about human relationships - something that we can never have enough of.

What happens to people who are raised without conventional social boundaries? Emerson Thorsen (Aaron Webber) is a thirteen-year-old boy living with his aging hippie parents in rural Nova Scotia. Even though they clearly love their son, Roj (Robert Joy) and Kaya (Rebecca Jenkins) often act more like Emerson's pals than his parents (they have the annoying habit of querying him about his burgeoning sexuality). After years of home schooling, the sensitive, highly gifted Emerson is enrolled in the local middle school where he immediately stands out from the more conventional members of the student body who have no interest in discussing poetry or reading Shakespeare. Emerson not only has problems relating to the other pupils, but he develops a crush of sorts on his English teacher (Daniel MacIvor, who co-wrote the screenplay), a common enough occurrence, except that Emerson, so long shielded from the societal norms of the outside world, feels no compunction not to act on his feelings, creating complications for everyone involved.

Alternately touching and queasy, "Whole New Thing" is a generally sensitive coming-of-age tale that distinguishes itself with its novel setting and its unusual set of characters. The movie doesn't always feel like it knows where it's going, but that can be as much a recommendation for the film as a criticism of it. There are times when it seems as if it is going to go completely off the rails - particularly in the marital travails of Roj and Kaya - but it always manages to somehow right itself at the last minute. Only at the VERY last minute does it fail to do so, succumbing to an ending that is far too abrupt, upbeat and amicable for what has gone before.

The acting is strong, and there is just enough complexity in the characters and storytelling to make us suspect that MacIvor (who has directed a number of films of his own) and writer/director Amnon Buchbinder, should they choose to collaborate again, will do even more sophisticated work in the future. As it stands, this is a promising early effort for the filmmakers.

I saw this to a packed audience at the Toronto International Film Festival today with director, lead actor, and producers in attendance.

This film exceeded my expectations and was enjoyable to watch. This film explores sexuality and relationships mainly through a home-schooled boy whose family integrates him into a regular school, coming into contact with students and one teacher in particular. This was an engrossing and very interesting exploration of this topic with tenderness, realism, and an excellent screenplay.

A few outstanding aspects:

1) SCREENPLAY: very intelligent, strong characters, motivations, with some very witty lines that really worked and, at times, got me laughing. Good flow.

2) VERY STRONG ACTING: The lead actor (first film for Aaron Webber) was very well cast, not to mention the performances from all leads was very strong. Kudos to the director for pulling this together.

3) VISUALS: The scenes and visuals are slightly out of the ordinary resulting in something that intrigues and makes it worth watching.

There is, however, one small area that was lacking believability which would make this an otherwise outstanding film: the evolving relationship of the lead character with his teacher. A bit more care with this crescendo is what is needed. With a few tweaks highlighting a special moment, or an additional scene, the movie would be perfect. I was thoroughly engrossed in the characters and story and give this movie a very strong endorsement.

This is a touching movie about Emerson, the 13-year-old son of hippies in rural Nova Scotia. He's been home-schooled; hoping to interest him more in academics, his mother decides to send him to the local school for the first time. As he becomes the target of bullies, more and more he develops a crush on his English teacher, Mr. Grant, who as it turns out is a closeted gay man who frequents the highway rest stop. His artless advances towards Mr. Grant scare the hell out of him, leaving Emerson hurt and confused. Meanwhile, his parents' marriage is in a crisis that they try unsuccessfully to camouflage from him.

There were a few thin spots (a few threads were left hanging ), but in general it's a sweet, reflective movie that compels us to identify with Emerson and invites us to think about the emotional reactions it raises in us. Another lovely Canadian (and specifically Maritime) queer film in the tradition of The Hanging Garden.

Amnon Buchbinder's "Whole New Thing" ranks among the best independent films of the past year. Solid performances, notably from newcomer Aaron Webber, and assured, mature direction bolster an excellent script (co-written by ubiquitous Canuck playwright and co-star Daniel MacIvor) about the vagaries of family, love and sexuality. Buchbinder's sensitive treatment of his characters never falls into cliché and consistently offers resonant insights. The script is well-paced and adroitly mixes comedy and tragedy to present a well-rounded view of humanity in bittersweet glory.

For those of you who thought Canadian cinema was just about Atom Egoyan and David Cronenberg, think again: Amnon Buchbinder is as strong and defined a voice as either of those two, and his soft touch arguably eclipses both in terms of his ability to explore the humanity of his characters.