The Timekeeper

Any one who has moved to the north at a young and innocent age and worked for a boss who's motives are not always pure will understand this movie. People who have not lived here may find it a stretch, but anyone who has met an elder who doesn't speak any English, anyone who has "dump-ster dived" because they couldn't afford groceries, anyone who has felt at times trapped by the remoteness of this land, will understand this movie. Unfortunately, not enough care is taken explaining the culture, the remote location, or the characters in the movie and so unless you are privy to the inside joke, you may very well miss a good story.

I struggled through this bit of Canadiana and truthfully got more from reading the synopsis afterwards than the movie itself. I think the biggest problem with this Indie drama is that nothing is explained; when is this taking place? Where is this remote location? What exactly is a timekeeper? What railroad are they building? All these things would have helped me get into this movie, as it was my favorite scene involved the men 'dump' diving with some bears and the Johnny Cash song played (Long Time) during one of the scenes -not a good sign. And what the hell was Roy Dupuis doing here, his character (and fake beard) were a mess. 02.28.14

FYI (and for my information) Set in 1964, this follows Martin Bishop (Craig Olejnik), a highly moral young man, as he attempts to work alongside a railway construction crew in the Northwest Territories.