The Grizzlies

One of the best sports movies I've seen in years. Never thought I could be so invested in a film about lacrosse, but then The Grizzlies is a rare film with a big heart.

It felt both tragic and heartwarming. I was completely transported into that little part of Canada and Inuit culture. The characters felt authentic and the scenery hard to look away from.

I thought it did a great job of acknowledging challenges facing Inuit and First Nations people both past and present. It was as much a cultural lesson for me as it was heartwarming film based on true events.

I felt invested in the plight of each character and felt quite connected to each of them by the end of the film. It was this connection that caused me to be pretty damn emotional at times!

Highly recommend.

At first I was a little "Another white guy saves the natives, fantastic" but the story was engaging and the acting was very good, and the cinematography was just great, and I soon got over my initial concerns. Having worked in the Arctic for a few years I think it was a realistic view of the land and it's people (although in the beginning I wondered if it was going to be a typical and oft-told tale of problems in the Native world from an outsiders POV) but it went past that, into the actual characters, people that I cared about. I liked the story and the ending, and the sign at the end is exactly what would happen in the native village I spent time in, and it was wonderful! (no spoilers here, just go watch the movie!) LOVED the end.

In 2005, Russ Sheppard (Ben Schnetzer) is a recent Canadian teaching graduate who flies to a small Inuit town in Nunavut for his first job. Trying to help the teens who have a high rate of suicide and despair, he teaches the kids lacrosse and organizes a local league.

There are moments when "The Grizzlies" feels like a formulaic sports movie though it thankfully has some unpredictable moments which fall outside that usual narrative. Also, Russ starts out as a naïve do-gooder / rescuer who is initially hard to take. But the movie wins for various reasons. The main one: it is based on a true story.

The film exposes the long-term difficulties of the community including not only the suicide rates mentioned but addiction, domestic violence, school truancy, and the legacy of the egregious residential school system. These other stories make the film gripping and moving with many emotions coming to the surface. It also provides hope in a sincere way that does not gloss over the long-term history of great struggle. As "The Grizzlies"joins the list of recent stories of First Nations histories, it is certainly more than a typical sports movie. Let's hope for more of these stories to be told. - dbamateurcritic

I have never cried & laughed so much in a movie before, it was so overwhelming from the start to the finish. The casting was perfect, the cinematography was breathtaking & the direction was inspiring. This movie should be made mandatory in schools across Canada.

I grew up in Southern Saskatchewan, my hometown For Qu'Appelle is surrounded by multiple First Nation reserves, as well as a very large Metis population, which I am very proud to be a part of. So I understand a lot of what First Nations people endure, but I never really knew what these strong people endured in the far north of our beautiful country. This amazing movie was educational and emotional to me. I would like to thank the amazing cast & crew for sharing the story of The Grizzlies with the world.

I stumbled across this movie on Netflix under hidden gems section. Simply put, definitely a gem. Great acting, great story, and a great watch.